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Intelligence Answers,
Delivers, and Interactive
Dashboards User Guide
Version 10.1.3.2
December 2006
Contents
Oracle Business Intelligence Answers, Delivers, and Interactive Dashboards User Guide 1
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Contents
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Assembling Views for Display on a Dashboard Using Oracle BI Compound Layout View
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Adding Titles to Results Using Oracle BI Title View
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Allowing Users to Change Columns in Requests Using Oracle BI Column Selector View
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Allowing Users to Select a Specific View Using View Selector View
Adding a Legend to Results Using Oracle BI Legend View
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Contents
Showing the Logical SQL for a Request Using Oracle BI Logical SQL View
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Creating Segments in Oracles Siebel Marketing Using Oracle BI Create Segment View
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Creating Lists of Contacts and Accounts Using Oracle BI Create Target List View
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Creating and Managing iBots Using the Oracle BI Delivers Start Page
Reviewing Oracle BI Delivers iBot Settings
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Working with Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Pages and Layout Using the Dashboard
Editor 197
Adding and Displaying Content in an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page Using the
Dashboard Editor 200
Renaming and Deleting Objects on an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page Using the
Dashboard Editor 212
Modifying Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Properties Using the Dashboard Editor 213
Oracle Business Intelligence Answers, Delivers, and Interactive
Dashboards User Guide Version 10.1.3.2
Contents
214
Creating and Assigning Personal and Shared Saved Selections for an Oracle BI
Interactive Dashboard Page 217
Accessing Another Oracle BI Users Account
Working with Oracle BI Publisher Reports
Working with Oracle BI Briefing Books
About Guided Navigation in Oracle BI
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Index
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Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition consists of components that were formerly available
from Siebel Systems as Siebel Business Analytics Platform, with a number of significant
enhancements.
The Oracle Business Intelligence Answers, Delivers, and Interactive Dashboards User Guide is part
of the documentation set for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition. This guide contains
information about using Oracles Answers, Delivers, and Interactive Dashboards applications to
organize and present data for making critical and timely business decisions. This guide contains new
material and material that was previously published under the title Siebel Analytics User Guide.
Table 1.
New Product Features in Oracle Business Intelligence Answers, Delivers, and Interactive
Dashboards User Guide, Version 10.1.3.2
Topic
Description
All
Table 1.
New Product Features in Oracle Business Intelligence Answers, Delivers, and Interactive
Dashboards User Guide, Version 10.1.3.2
Topic
Description
Added new topic with task showing how to create an iBot from
a saved request in Oracle BI Answers.
Table 1.
New Product Features in Oracle Business Intelligence Answers, Delivers, and Interactive
Dashboards User Guide, Version 10.1.3.2
Topic
Description
Table 1.
New Product Features in Oracle Business Intelligence Answers, Delivers, and Interactive
Dashboards User Guide, Version 10.1.3.2
Topic
Description
10
This chapter describes the major features and functions of Oracle Business Intelligence (Oracle BI)
that most end users typically work with. It explains how Oracle BI works, provides information about
security, explains how to access Oracle BI, and provides procedures for commonly performed tasks.
This chapter contains the following topics:
Oracle BI Components
This topic provides a broad overview of Oracle BI components, from an end-user perspective.
Oracle BI has two main components:
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Getting Started with Oracle Business Intelligence Overview of Oracle BI for End Users
Oracle Business Intelligence Delivers. Oracle BI Delivers is the interface used to create
Oracle Business Intelligence Alerts based on analytics results. Specific results can be
detected within reports and the appropriate people notified immediately through Web,
wireless, and mobile communications channels.
Oracle BI Delivers uses intelligence bots called iBots to detect specific results. iBots are
software-based agents, driven by schedules or events that can access, filter, and perform
analytics on data based on specified criteria.
Users with the appropriate permissions can use Oracle BI Delivers to set up the conditions to
trigger an alert. For example, if a user should be notified when a particular event occurs, such
as customer account going critical, an alert can be created that will notify the user through
a number of delivery options, such as email or cell phone.
12
Business logic object security. This security mechanism controls access to objects, such as
subject areas, tables, and columns. For example, report designers in a particular department can
view only the subject areas that belong to their department when using Oracle BI Answers.
Presentation Catalog object security. This security mechanism provides security for objects
stored in the Oracle BI Presentation Catalog, such as dashboards, dashboard pages, folders, and
reports. Users can view only the objects for which they are authorized. For example, a mid-level
manager may not be granted access to a dashboard containing summary information for an
entire department.
Data level security. This security mechanism controls the type and amount of data that is
available in a report. When multiple users run the same report, the results that are returned to
each user depend on their access rights and roles in the organization. For example, a sales vice
president sees results for all regions, while a sales representative for a particular region sees
only data for that region.
The security mechanisms in Oracle BI applications can use security hierarchies defined in operational
applications such as Siebel CRM applications, minimizing the need for Oracle Business Intelligence
administrators to manage multiple security systems. It also allows a high degree of control over
access to elements in Oracle BI applications.
Accessing Oracle BI
This section explains how to access and exit Oracle BI. It contains the following topics:
NOTE: Oracle BI requires that the internet browser is set to accept cookies. Oracle BI uses a cookie
to track a users logged-on session.
13
Navigate to the Analytics tab for the application and click it.
The default dashboard for your role and responsibilities appears.
Figure 1.
Oracle BI applications are organized into dashboards and pages. Each dashboard contains one or
more pages that display reports targeted to a specific business industry or group of users. Figure 1
shows an example Pipeline Analytics dashboard from an example Siebel Sales application. In
Figure 1, the pages on the Pipeline Analytics dashboard are shown as tabs across the top of the
dashboard.
14
Type the URL into the address field on your browser (for example, http://hostname:port/
analytics).
You can also add the URL to your list of favorites or bookmarks.
The login screen appears.
NOTE: The following login screen is an example. Your login screen may look different than the
example.
Select the language in which you want to work from the drop-down list, if this option is available
on the login screen.
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Pause the cursor over the title of the saved request in the selection pane in Oracle BI Answers.
Pause the cursor over the name of the dashboard in Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards.
To view the description of a dashboard page, pause the cursor over the page tab.
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To print a request, click the Print link, and then choose HTML or PDF. To print a dashboard page,
locate and click the Print button at the bottom of the dashboard, and then choose HTML or PDF.
For HTML, a new window shows the selected item without the extraneous links.
Choose File > Print on the browser menu.
For PDF, use the options available in the Adobe PDF window to save or print the file.
To email a request, click the Print link, and then choose HTML or PDF. To email a dashboard page,
locate and click the Print button at the bottom of the dashboard, and then choose HTML or PDF
A new browser window opens that contains the dashboard page or the request.
Save the file to the desired location, with the appropriate file type for your browser.
NOTE: The saved attachments can also be used as a means to archive and restore requests as they
exist at a particular point in time.
Download to Excel
This option makes the request results available to Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Excel 2000 in HTML
format, including tables or charts that appear with the results. It also includes any other views
included in the report. Excel controls the positioning of the HTML.
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Download Data
This option downloads results as a tab-separated list of values. The file will have a .csv extension
to facilitate opening it in Excel. After downloading a request in tab-delimited format, you can use
a third-party application to display the data.
Click the Download link and choose either Download to Excel or Download to Excel 2000.
The File Download dialog box appears.
Click the Download link and choose Download Data, and then save the file on your hard drive.
Click the Download link and choose Download Web Page (MHTML).
The File Download dialog box appears.
18
When you select a specific dashboard or request, Oracle BI Presentation Services checks its cache
to determine if the identical results have recently been requested. If so, Oracle BI Presentation
Services returns the most recent results, thereby avoiding unnecessary processing by the Oracle BI
Server and the back-end database. If not, the request is issued to the Oracle BI Server for
processing.
If the Oracle BI Server has cached results that can satisfy your request, the results are returned from
that cache. If not, Oracle BI Server issues the request to the back-end database. You cannot force
your request past the Oracle BI Server's cache.
Oracle BI administrators can configure cache settings for Oracle BI Presentation Services that control
what is cached and for how long. For information, see Oracle Business Intelligence Presentation
Services Administration Guide. For information about the Oracle BI Server cache, see Oracle
Business Intelligence Server Administration Guide.
To refresh a request, click the Refresh link. To refresh a dashboard, click the Refresh button.
To refresh the information for saved requests, filters, briefing books, and dashboard content,
click the Refresh Display link at the bottom of the selection pane.
To refresh the view of the Oracle BI Server metadata for subject areas, click the link Reload
Server Metadata at the bottom of the selection pane.
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Navigating in Oracle BI
This section explains basic navigation within Oracle BI. It contains the following topics:
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Figure 2 shows an example My Dashboard page from a sample Oracle BI application. You can change
some aspects of the appearance of the My Dashboard page based on your personal preferences.
NOTE: Your dashboard may look different than the example.
Figure 2.
In stand-alone Oracle BI, the links are located in the upper right corner of the screen. The links
available to you are determined by your privilege settings.
In Oracle BI applications, the links are located near the top of the page, if you have permission
to access those links. You can access other links as views, such as Dashboards, Answers,
Delivers, Alerts, Administration, and My Account. The views that you can access are determined
by your role and responsibilities.
21
Table 2.
Link
Description
Alerts!
Accesses the Active Alerts page, from which you can view and manage your
active alerts. This link appears only if you have active alerts.
Dashboards
Accesses the Interactive Dashboard page, from which you can view the
dashboards to which you have access.
Answers
Accesses Oracle BI Answers, from which you can view, create, and manage
requests.
More Products
Settings/My
Account
Log Out
Used to log out of Oracle BI. Always use this link to log out of Oracle BI.
Panes. Both the Oracle BI Delivers and Oracle BI Answers pages display a left and a right pane.
The left pane is the selection pane, used to navigate to, select, and manage saved information.
The right pane is used to display and work with the content selected in the left pane.
Tabs. Tabs provide access to other pages related to the current page. The tabs appear in the top
part of the page. The list of available tabs depends on which page you select.
Oracle BI feature links are used to access these pages. Each feature link provides access to a specific
feature or topic. Pages can contain other organization and navigation elements, such as tabs, areas,
and panes.
For information about feature links, see Using Oracle BI Feature Links on page 21.
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Getting Started with Oracle Business Intelligence Using the Oracle BI My Account
Page
View general account information, such as your display name and user ID.
View and modify your delivery options for Oracle BI Delivers iBots.
View a list of users who can access your reports and dashboards.
Depending on your privilege settings, not all of these options may be available.
In the Default Dashboard drop-down list, select the dashboard you want to display when you
log in to Oracle BI.
In the Locale drop-down list, select the locale that you want to use for this session.
In the User Interface language drop-down list, select the language in which you want Oracle
BI to appear.
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Getting Started with Oracle Business Intelligence Using the Oracle BI My Account
Page
In the preference section, select a time zone from the Time Zone dropdown box.
Click Finished.
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Oracle BI Answers is the Oracle BI interface used to query your organizations data. The results of
your request can be saved, organized, shared, and integrated with other content. This chapter
provides an overview of Oracle BI Answers and provides the basic procedures used to create, modify,
and administer requests. It contains the following topics:
Integrating an Oracle BI Request with Microsoft Excels Internet Query Feature on page 40
Examining or Editing the Logical SQL Generated for an Oracle BI Request on page 42
Using Variables to Display Values in Request Results, Dashboards and iBots on page 44
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Table 3.
Term
Definition
Column
Columns indicate the columns of data that your request will return. Together
with filters, they determine what your results will contain. To run a request, you
need to specify at least one column to return.
Criteria
Request criteria consists of the columns and filters you specify for a request.
Dashboard
Dashboard
Prompt
A dashboard prompt is a special dashboard filter object that affects all content
on a particular dashboard page, and potentially the content on additional
dashboard pages.
For more information, see Using Prompts to Simplify Filtering in an Oracle BI
Request on page 56.
Filter
A filter is a mechanism that restricts the result set, such as including only the
ten best-selling items in results. Together with columns, filters determine what
your results will contain.
Folder
A folder is an organizational construct that holds any kind of content you want
to see in your dashboard, including requests created with Oracle BI Answers.
A folder is similar to an operating system directory or subdirectory, or a
Microsoft Windows folder.
Query
A query is the underlying SQL issued to the Oracle BI Server. You do not have
to know a query language to use Oracle BI Answers.
Results
Results are the output returned from the Oracle BI Server for the request
criteria you specified. The Oracle BI Presentation Services formats the data for
presentation to you.
SELECT
statement
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Table 3.
Term
Definition
Subject Area
Oracle BI presents data in subject areas. A subject area contains columns that
represent information about the areas of your organizations business, or about
groups of users within your organization.
Subject areas have names that correspond to the types of information they
contain, for example, Marketing Contracts, Service Requests, and Orders.
Columns also have names that indicate the types of information they contain,
such as Account and Contact.
Presentation
Catalog
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The Oracle BI Answers start page contains two panes. The selection pane on the left contains the
Catalog and Dashboard tabs that you use to select items to work with. The workspace on the right
contains a list of the actions you can perform and the subject areas that are available to you. The
feature links listed at the top of the workspace provide access to Oracle BI functions.
Selection pane, with
the Catalog and
Dashboards tabs
Figure 3.
Accessing Subject Areas and Requests Using the Oracle BI Answers Start Page on page 29
Creating an iBot in Oracle BI Delivers directly from a saved request in Oracle BI Answers on
page 32
Creating a New Oracle BI Request or Changing the Criteria for an Existing Request on page 33
28
NOTE: For information about working with Briefing Books, see Working with Oracle BI Briefing Books
on page 224.
Selection pane. The selection pane, located on the left side of the screen, shows content saved
in the Presentation Catalog, such as personal and shared requests and filters, and your briefing
books (if your organization licensed this feature).
Workspace. The workspace, located to the right of the selection pane, initially shows the subject
areas you can work with to create requests.
When you make a selection from the selection pane, such as clicking a saved request, your selection
appears in the workspace so you can work with it.
When you click a subject area in the workspace to create a new request, the selection pane changes
to show the columns and filters for that subject area that you can include in a request, and the
workspace displays the tabs for working with requests.
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Type all or part of its name into the Search text box, and then click the Search button.
Search results are listed in the workspace.
NOTE: If you use a backslash character (\) in an iBot name (for example Na\me), the search
string used to find it must contain an additional backslash (called an escape character). For
example, an iBot called Na\me would require the search string Na\\me, to retrieve details for
that iBot. Without the additional backslash an error message is displayed.
Criteria tab. This tab provides access to the columns selected for the request, and buttons to
access the most common view types.
Results tab. This tab allows you to work with the results of the request.
Prompts tab. This tab allows you to create prompts to filter the request.
Advanced tab. This tab allows advanced users to work with the XML and logical SQL for the
request.
Each tab contains on-screen information and buttons to help you create, access, and manage
requests. On each tab, you can pause your mouse over each button for a description of what it does.
Table 4 on page 31 provides additional information about each tab.
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Table 4.
Tab
Description
Criteria Tab
Use the Criteria tab to view or change the columns and filters for the request.
You can specify the order in which the results should be returned, column
subtotals, formatting (such as headings and number of decimal places), and
column formulas (such as adding a Rank or Percentile function). You can also
add or modify column filters.
Four common views are available from this tab by clicking the appropriate view
button:
Displays the compound layout view, where you can combine individual
views and arrange them for display on a dashboard.
Displays the table view, where you can show results in a table.
Displays the chart view, where you can show results in different kinds of
charts.
Displays the pivot table view, where you can take row, column, and
section headings and swap them around to obtain different perspectives.
Results Tab
Use the Results tab to work with the results of a request, and create different
views of the results such as charts, tickers, and pivot tables. You can add a
variety of views, including charts and pivot tables that show the data, plain or
formatted text that describes the results, HTML, and more.
The default results view is a simple table with a title. Your Oracle Business
Intelligence Presentation Services administrator may have configured a different
default results view for your organization.
You can combine views and position them anywhere on the page. For example,
you can create side-by-side pivot tables that reflect different views of the data,
charts that allow you to explore interrelationships in depth, and filters that limit
the results. If the request is embedded in a dashboard, the dashboard page can
also include links to additional requests of interest, related graphics, news
stories, and so on.
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Table 4.
Tab
Description
Prompts Tab
Use the Prompts tab to create prompts that allow users to select values to filter
a request. Prompts allow users to select values that dynamically filter all views
within the request.
Advanced Tab
Use the Advanced tab to work directly with the XML and logical SQL generated
for the request. If you know SQL and the structure of your underlying data
sources, you can use the Advanced tab to view and work directly with the SQL
statements generated for the request. For example, you can change the subject
area or add advanced SQL statements.
The Advanced tab also provides access to links that you can use to execute
saved requests from an external Web page, portal, or application.
NOTE: The Advanced tab is recommended for use only by developers or
experienced users with complex data analysis needs and capabilities. Only users
with the appropriate responsibilities are given access to the Advanced tab.
In the selection pane, click a saved request from your My Folders list or from a shared folder.
NOTE: Selecting a request from a folder causes the request to be executed immediately.
Click a subject area, select the columns and filters to include in the request, and then click the
Results tab or one of the result view buttons.
For more information, see Creating a New Oracle BI Request or Changing the Criteria for an
Existing Request on page 33.
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In the selection pane in Oracle BI Answers, click the Create iBot link for a saved request from
your My Folders list or from a shared folder.
NOTE: The Create iBots link is not available if your organization is not using Oracle BI Delivers.
Oracle BI Delivers displays the Schedule tab where you specify iBot schedule settings for the
saved request.
For more information, see Scheduling an Oracle BI Delivers iBot on page 168.
To modify an existing request, click it on Catalog tab in the selection pane, and then click the
Modify button.
The Criteria tab appears in the workspace.
TIP: To go directly to the Criteria tab, press and hold down the CTRL key when you click the
request.
To create a new request, click a subject area at the Oracle BI Answers start page, or click the
button to create a new request (located at the top of the Catalog tab in the selection pane,
and when you are working with a request, in the upper right corner of the workspace).
Creating a new request clears any previous request from the workspace, and allows you to
continue working with the same subject area.
The subject area for the request appears in the selection pane, together with its columns.
Use the column buttons to control the use of each column in the request.
For information about the column buttons, see Table 5 on page 35.
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To reorder columns in the workspace, drag and drop a column name from its current location to
another location.
Click one of the result view buttons for a table, chart, or pivot table near the top of the
workspace.
Click the preview button to see how results will look on the dashboard:
NOTE: If the preview button is not available, your Oracle BI Presentation Services
administrator has suppressed its display.
Click the Results tab and choose a view from the drop-down list.
Click the Save and Schedule button to save the request in Oracle BI Answers, and create an
iBot in Oracle BI Delivers for the saved request.
NOTE: The Save and Schedule button is not available if your organization is not using Oracle
BI Delivers.
Oracle BI Delivers displays the Schedule tab for the new iBot.
For more information, see Scheduling an Oracle BI Delivers iBot on page 168.
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Table 5.
Button
In Oracle BI Answers, display the request with which you want to work.
Click the Order By button for the column you want to sort by.
The button changes to indicate the sort order.
Continue clicking the Order By button until the sort order you want appears.
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Table 6 describes the available sort orders and the images on the Order By button that represent
them.
Table 6.
Form
To refresh information in the selection pane for saved requests, filters, briefing
books, and dashboard content
To refresh information in the selection pane for the view of the Oracle BI Server
metadata for subject areas
36
To page forward and backward through the results, use the paging buttons at the bottom of
the page.
NOTE: The paging buttons appear only when two or more pages of results are present.
To edit the criteria used in the request, click the Criteria tab or the option to show header
toolbars.
To edit the XML or logical SQL for a request, click the Advanced tab.
NOTE: The Advanced tab is for advanced users and developers only. Only users with the
appropriate responsibilities are given access to the Advanced tab. For more information, see
Examining or Editing the Logical SQL Generated for an Oracle BI Request on page 42.
To add grand totals or column totals to a result, use the table or pivot table view:
To add grand totals, click the Grand Totals button at the top of the workspace.
To add totals for an individual column, click the Total By button for that column.
NOTE: The Total By button is available only for columns that can be totaled.
37
Navigate to it.
Click OK.
Save the report to a Web archive file (file extension .mht), and then upload the file to the Lotus
Note database.
Schedule the report using Oracle BI Delivers to be emailed automatically to a specific address on
a Lotus Notes server. The Lotus Notes server can then process the email and write it to the
database.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
About Oracle BI Views on page 85
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
Accessing and Working with an Oracle BI Request in Microsoft Excel on page 39
Integrating an Oracle BI Request with Microsoft Excels Internet Query Feature on page 40
38
Basics of Working with Requests in Oracle BI Answers Accessing and Working with
an Oracle BI Request in Microsoft Excel
Figure 4.
When you first access a saved request in Microsoft Excel, you are prompted for your Oracle BI
Presentation Services user ID and password. You can instruct Microsoft Excel to include your Oracle
BI user ID and password with your saved Excel workbook so you do not have to supply your login
credentials each time you access the workbook. If the workbook is shared by other users, you would
not typically instruct Excel to save your login credentials.
When you open a saved request in Microsoft Excel, you can choose from two data formats:
Unformatted Data
This format is the data view of the criteria for the request. The data view shows the underlying
request data only, exclusive of any report formatting that was applied or any views that were
assembled using the compound layout view in Oracle BI Answers. You can use Excel functions to
add additional rows and columns, such as dividing one value by another value.
Formatted Results
This format shows the Microsoft Excel version of the compound layout view assembled for the
request in Oracle BI Answers. This format includes items that are compatible with Microsoft Excel
such as column formatting, grand totals, and views included in the compound layout view.
NOTE: Any Oracle BI Chart views for the request cannot be included in the Formatted Results
view in Microsoft Excel.
You can save Microsoft Excel workbooks that contain Oracle BI content using Excels save functions.
The following procedures provide the steps to perform various functions using the Oracle BI toolbar.
39
Type your user ID and password and click the log in button to submit your login credentials.
A window appears from which you can select a saved request from the Oracle BI Presentation
Catalog. The window shows you your personal content and shared content to which you have
access.
Navigate to the saved request, click it to select it, and click OK.
The additional options dialog box appears.
To allow Microsoft Excel to include your login credentials with the saved Excel workbook, select
the option to remember your user ID and password.
Click Continue.
The request appears within Microsoft Excel.
Right-click in the data area and select the Refresh Data option.
40
At the Advanced tab in Oracle BI Answers, click the link to generate and download a Web Query
file.
Effect on Results
Union
Union All
Intersect
Minus
Returns rows from the first request that are not in the other requests.
Select a subject area and add columns to the request at the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers.
Select a subject area that contains the data you want to combine with the selections you made
in Step 1.
The subject area can be the same as that selected in Step 1, or a different subject area.
The Set Operations page appears.
Click the Union button and select the operation type, and select columns from the selection pane
to combine with the first request.
41
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify a request and click the Advanced tab.
The proposed XML and logical SQL appear for the request.
Use the Advanced SQL Clauses section following the proposed SQL to change the subject area,
add GROUP BY or HAVING clauses, and specify DISTINCT processing.
To combine this request with a similar request from the same subject area or another subject
area, where you can perform Set operations such as UNION or INTERSECT on the results, click
the following button on the Criteria tab:
Combine with Similar Request
If you want to edit the SQL or XML directly, continue with the following steps.
CAUTION: When you click the Set SQL button in the next step, be aware that the Criteria tab
for this request may no longer be accessible.
If you want to modify the SQL, read the preceding caution statement, make your modifications
to the SQL directly in the Edit window, and then click the Set SQL button.
CAUTION: Requests are stored in the Presentation Catalog in XML format. If you change the XML
in the following step, you are changing the request in the Presentation Catalog.
42
If you want to modify the XML, read the preceding caution statement, make your modifications
to the XML directly in the Edit window, and then click the Set XML button.
Follow the on-screen instructions to specify the name of the connection pool for the database
defined in the physical layer of the Oracle Business Intelligence Server Administration Tool.
For information about connection pools, see Oracle Business Intelligence Server Administration
Guide.
To bypass the Oracle BI Presentation Services cache, click the bypass option.
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What are session variables, repository variables, and presentation variables? on page 44
What is the syntax for referencing repository and presentation variables? on page 45
What pre-defined variables can be referenced in request results, dashboards and iBots? on page 46
Title Views
Narrative Views
44
Column Filters
Column Formulas
Dashboard prompts
Users will be prompted for a variable value which is then set into a request (session) variable
and passed to the Oracle BI server.
Static text.
variableName - a reference to an object available in the current session context. For example:
dashboard.description.
45
format - (optional) - a format mask dependent on the data type of the variable. For
example: #,##0, MM/DD/YY hh:mm:ss, and so on.
NOTE: If the @ sign is not followed by a {, it will be treated as an @ sign. For more information,
see Editing the Appearance of Column Contents in Oracle BI Answers on page 67.
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Object
Variable
Example
System
productVersion
currentTime
Session
locale
language
rtl
timeZone
loginTime
logoutTime
lastAccessTime
currentUser
session.locale = en-gb
session.language = en
session.rtl = false
session.timeZone = Unknown Time Zone
session.loginTime = 2006-9-21 14:0:17
session.logoutTime = 2006-9-21 16:0:17
session.lastAccessTime = 2006-9-21 14:01:35
session.currentUser = administrator
User
id
displayName
homeDirectory
user.id = administrator
user.displayName = administrator
user.homeDirectory = /users/administrator
Dashboard
currentPage
xml
A filter is used to limit the results that appear when an Oracle BI request is run. Together with the
columns selected for a request, a filter determines what your results will contain. Based on the filter
criteria, Oracle BI Answers shows only those results that match the filter criteria. Filters are applied
on a column-level basis. A filter can also combine other filters to further constrain the results of a
request. Another kind of filter, called a dashboard prompt, can apply to all items in a dashboard.
This chapter explains how to construct filters and use them to filter requests in Oracle BI Answers.
It contains the following topics:
An operator that determines how the value is applied, such as Less Than.
For example, if the column contains the number of units sold, the operator is Less Than, and the
value is 10, the results include only order quantities only where less than 10 units were sold.
47
It can be combined with other column filters from the same subject area to further constrain the
results of a request.
Filters can be grouped (a capability called parenthetical filtering) to create complex filters
without requiring you to know SQL.
Its value can be constrained by the results of a previously-saved request from the same subject
area.
You can also prevent the filter from being replaced during navigation and prompting.
The filter is translated into a WHERE clause in the SQL SELECT statement that is issued to the Oracle
BI Server. The WHERE clause is used to limit the rows returned to those that fit the specified
constraints. Advanced users can type the SQL for a filter directly.
This section provides the procedures for working with column filters in Oracle BI Answers. It contains
the following topics:
Combining a Column Filter with Other Column Filters in Oracle BI Answers on page 55
Preventing a Filter from Being Replaced During Navigation and Prompting on page 55
To create a filter for use with a specific request, display a request to which you want to add
a filter, click the Criteria tab, and then click the Filter button for the column that you want to
include in the filter.
TIP: To add a filter for a column that is not included in request, press and hold down the
CTRL key at the Criteria tab and click the column name in the selection pane.
48
To create a filter for use with multiple requests, click the New Saved Filter button at the top
of the selection pane, and then select the subject area that contains the column you want to
use in the filter.
When the Saved Filter screen appears, select the column from the Columns area in the
selection pane.
At the Create/Edit Filter dialog box, choose an operator from the Operator drop-down list.
The choices for operators and values appear in the left column. Depending on the type of column
you select, additional options may appear in the right column, such as calendar buttons for
specifying a date range, or a text-matching box for limiting long lists of values.
To specify a value, type it into the Value box or select a value from the right column.
Use the guidelines shown in the following table when choosing an operator and specifying values.
Operator
Usage Guidelines
is equal to / is in
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Specify a single
value or multiple values. Results will include only records where the data
in the column matches the value in the filter.
is not equal to / is
not in
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Specify a single
value or multiple values. Results will include only records where the data
in the column does not match the value in the filter.
is less than
Valid for a column that contains numbers or dates. Specify a single value.
Results will include only records where the data in the column is less than
the value in the filter.
is greater than
Valid for a column that contains numbers or dates. Specify a single value.
Results will include only records where the data in the column is greater
than the value in the filter.
Valid for a column that contains numbers or dates. Specify a single value
or multiple values. Results will include only records where the data in the
column is less than or the same as the value in the filter.
is greater than or
equal to
Valid for a column that contains numbers or dates. Specify a single value
or multiple values. Results will include only records where the data in the
column is greater than or the same as the value in the filter.
is between
Valid for a column that contains numbers or dates. Specify two values.
Result will include only records where the data in the column is between
the two values in the filter.
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Operator
Usage Guidelines
is null
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Do not specify
a value. The operator tests only for the absence of data in the column.
Results will include only records where there is no data in the column.
Sometimes it may be useful to know whether any data is present, and
using the is null operator is a way to test for that condition. For example,
suppose your business has a world-wide address book and you want to
extract the United States addresses only. You could do this by checking
for the presence or absence of data in the "State" field. This field should
be unpopulated (null) for non-United States addresses and populated
(not null) for United States addresses. You can obtain a list of United
States addresses without the need to check the column for a specific
value.
is not null
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Do not specify
a value. The operator tests only for the presence of data in the column.
Results will include only records where there is data in the column.
is in top
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Specify a single
value. Results will include only the first n records, where n is a whole
number specified as the value in the filter.
This operator is for ranked results. For example, you could use this
operator to obtain a list of the top ten performers.
is in bottom
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Specify a single
value. Results will include only the last n records, where n is a whole
number specified as the value in the filter.
This operator is for ranked results. For example, you could use this to
obtain a list of the customers reporting the fewest numbers of problems.
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contains all
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Specify a single
value or multiple values. Results will include only records where the data
in the column contains all of the values in the filter.
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Specify a single
value or multiple values. Results will include only records where the data
in the column does not contain any of the values in the filter.
contains any
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Specify a single
value or multiple values. Results will include only records where the data
in the column contains at least one of the values in the filter.
begins with
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Specify a single
value. Results will include only records where the data in the column
begins with the value in the filter.
ends with
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Specify a single
value. Results will include only records where the data in the column
ends with the value in the filter.
Operator
Usage Guidelines
is LIKE (pattern
match)
Valid for a column that contains text. Specify a single value or multiple
values. Requires the use of a percent sign character (%) as a wild card
character. You may specify up to two percent sign characters in the value.
Results will include only records where the data in the column matches
the pattern value in the filter.
Valid for a column that contains text. Specify a single value or multiple
values. Requires the use of a percent sign character (%) as a wild card
character. You may specify up to two percent sign characters in the value.
Results will include only records where the data in the column does not
match the pattern value in the filter.
is prompted
Valid for a column that contains text, numbers, or dates. Choosing this
operator for a column flags it as ready to be filtered by a dashboard
prompt. This means when a dashboard prompt is used, results will
include only records where the data in the column that is prompted
column matches the user's choices.
NOTE: This operator is required for columns included in dashboard
prompts where no prefiltered values are desired.
Use the paging controls to navigate the choices when there are many choices for the column:
Click the double right-arrow paging button ( >> ) to advance to the next page, or the double
left-arrow paging button ( << ) to go back to the previous page.
Click triple right-arrow paging button ( >>> ) to advance to the last page, or the triple leftarrow paging button ( <<< ) to go back to the first page.
Use the calendar buttons to specify the date range for columns that contain dates.
To specify a single date, specify the same date for the beginning and ending date.
Use the Match box to limit the list of values to appear in the All Choices or Limited Choices list
for columns that contain text or numbers.
For example, suppose you want to see results for the East region. If you type an E into the Match
box, the list shows only the values that begin with an E. If you have set other constraints in the
filter, the Limited Choices list shows only the choices within those constraints.
To add an SQL expression or a system variable (defined in the Oracle BI repository), perform the
following actions:
b
8
Type the SQL expression or system variable name into the box.
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Click the Add button, choose Variable, and then the Presentation option.
A Presentation Variable field and a Default field appears.
c
9
Type a default value (Optional) to be used if no value is returned by the presentation variable.
To remove a value, SQL expression, system variable, or presentation variable, click the Delete
button next to it.
To remove all definitions, click the Clear Values button.
10 To have this filter constrained by the value of a column from the same subject area in another
request, click the Advanced button and choose the following option:
Filter based on results of another request
The Filter on Saved Request dialog box appears. For more information, see Using a Saved Oracle
BI Request as a Filter on page 64.
11 To convert the filter to SQL, click the Advanced button and choose the following option:
Convert this filter to SQL
The Advanced SQL Filter dialog box appears. For more information, see Editing the SQL for a
Column Filter in an Oracle BI Request on page 64.
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At the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, click the Save Request button.
At the Choose Folder dialog box, choose the location in which to save the request.
For more information about saving requests, see Saving an Oracle BI Request to a Personal or
Shared Folder on page 37.
In the Filters area on the Criteria tab, click the Save Filter button for the filter you want to save.
At the Choose Folder dialog box, choose a folder in which to save the filter:
Navigate to it.
Click OK.
When you click the Refresh Display link in the selection pane, the filter is listed under the Filters
folder in either My Filters or in a shared filters folder.
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At the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, display a request to which you want to add a saved
column filter.
In the selection pane, navigate to the appropriate Filters folder and click the saved filter that you
want to apply.
The Apply Saved Filter dialog box appears.
Click OK.
The filter appears in the Filters area on the Criteria tab.
In the Filters area on the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, click the menu button for the filter
you want to edit and choose Edit Filter.
The Create/Edit Filter dialog box appears.
NOTE: The Edit Filter option is available only if you have permission to edit the filter.
In the Filters area on the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, click the menu button for the filter
whose formula you want to edit and choose the following option:
Edit Column Formula
At the Column Formula tab, type the formula into the Column Formula area.
For more information, click the help button.
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In the Filters area on the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, perform one of the following actions:
To remove a single filter from a request, click the Delete button for the filter.
To remove all filters from a request, click the Remove Filters button.
At the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, add at least two column filters to a request, or add at
least two column filters to a saved filter.
The filters are listed in the Filters area with an AND operator between them.
As you add column filters, click AND and OR operators to group filters and construct the desired
filter combinations.
Combined filters elements are bounded by boxes.
To cut, copy, or ungroup bounded elements, click the ellipses button [. . .] and choose the
appropriate option.
In the Filters area on the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, click the menu button for the filter
you want to protect and select the option Protect Filter.
A check mark appears next to the option when it is selected.
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Related Topic
Using Prompts to Simplify Filtering in an Oracle BI Request on page 56
A dashboard prompt is a special kind of filter that filters requests embedded in a dashboard. A
dashboard prompt filters embedded requests that contain the same columns as the filter. It can
filter all embedded requests in a dashboard, or embedded requests on the same dashboard page.
Multiple columns in a dashboard prompt can be used to constrain users' choices for subsequent
selections. For example, if one column filters on a region, and the next column filters on districts,
the district column can be constrained to show only districts in the region the user selects. A
dashboard prompt can also be populated dynamically so that it can be programmatically
customized for each user.
A criteria prompt guides users in making selections for individual requests. There are two kinds
of criteria prompts, column filter prompts and image prompts:
A column filter prompt provides general filtering of a column within a request. A column filter
prompt can present all choices for a column, or, like a dashboard prompt, it can present
constrained choices for a column. For example, if a request contains a Region=East filter,
constraining choices for the City column restricts the selections to cities in the East region
only. This eliminates the selection of a mutually exclusive filter that could result in no data.
An image prompt provides an image that users click to select criteria for a request. For
example, in a sales organization, users can click their territories from an image of a map to
see sales information, or click a product image to see sales information about that product.
Users who know how to use the HTML <map> tag can create an image map definition.
This section explains how to work with prompts. It contains the following topics:
For information about setting up a dashboard prompt, see Creating a Dashboard Prompt for Filtering
Oracle BI Requests on page 60.
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Column filter prompts appear on the Prompts tab. When you have multiple column filter prompts
constructed for a request, they are executed in the order they are listed, from top to bottom.
At the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, modify a request to which you want to add a column
filter prompt, and then click the Prompts tab.
From the Create Prompt drop-down list, select Column Filter Prompt.
The Column Filter Prompt Properties dialog box appears.
Type a caption for the column filter prompt in the Caption box.
The caption will appear to the user. You can include HTML markup tags in the caption, such as
<b>, <font>, and <table>.
From the Filter on Column drop-down list, select the column in the request that you want to filter,
and then, from the Operator drop-down list, select the operator to use.
If you want the user to select the operator, select the operator *Prompt User.
Specify how the user should choose values by clicking the appropriate option.
Users can select values from a drop-down list, or browse through choices and type them into a
text box.
To allow the user to choose only one value for the column filter prompt, click the check box
labeled Single Value Only.
Select the values that should be shown to the user by clicking the appropriate option:
To limit the values to the results of an SQL statement, click the option SQL Results and type
the SQL statement into the text box.
To explicitly limit the number of choices a user sees per page, type the number in the Choices
per page box.
57
To allow the user to constrain the filter choices, click the check box next to the following
option:
Allow user to constrain choices
Constrained choices help the user locate the values to use as a filter. For example, if a filter
contains all the cities in France, a user can constrain the filter choices to those cities starting
with P.
To allow a user to skip this column filter, click the check box next to the following option:
Allow user to skip prompt
This causes a Skip Prompt option to appear. The user can then click this option to bypass
making a selection for this filter.
Click the Properties link to open the Column Filter Prompt Properties dialog box.
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In Oracle BI Answers, display a request to which you want to add an image prompt, and then
click the Prompts tab.
Type the location and name of the image in the Image URL box.
If the image prompt is for your use only, you can specify a location that only you can access,
such as c:\mycomputer\temp\map.gif. For an image prompt that will be available to other users,
specify the Universal Naming Convention (UNC) name, such as \\ALLUSERS\graphics\map.gif.
Type the appropriate HTML <map> tags and data in the HTML box.
To extract the image map information from the HTML, click the link Extract Image Map from
HTML.
The Image Map Prompt Properties dialog box expands to show the area titles, shapes, and
coordinates entered in the HTML box.
For each area, in the Column box, type the name of the column to pass when a user clicks
it, and the value to use.
NOTE: The column needs to be a fully qualified column name, in the format Table.Column
Name.
Place double quotes around any column names containing spaces. These are examples:
"Country name"
"Units shipped"
To preview the image prompt, click the preview button (if available).
NOTE: If the preview button is not available, your Oracle BI Presentation Services administrator
has suppressed its display.
10 When you click an area of the image, the underlying filter constructed for that area displays. You
can click the Refresh link to see the results. You can change the filter criteria and then click the
Refresh link again to see the change reflected in the results.
Click the Properties link to open the Image Map Prompt Properties dialog box.
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Related Topic
Using Column Filters in an Oracle BI Request on page 47
60
A presentation variable that is declared in a dashboard prompt can also be referenced in various
areas of a report. The value entered at the dashboard prompt can then be displayed (using the
presentation variable), in request results displayed in the dashboard. For more information about
using variables, see the chapter about working with requests in Oracle Business Intelligence
Answers, Delivers, and Interactive Dashboards User Guide.
NOTE: If you are creating variables to use with Oracle BI Publisher reports based on data from the
Oracle BI Server, the variable names must match the parameter names that are included in the
report.
After you create a dashboard prompt, save it in a personal folder under My Folders or in a shared
folder. If you save the prompt in a personal folder, it is available for use only on your dashboard. If
you save it in a shared folder, it is available for use by other users who have permission to use objects
in the shared folder. After you have saved a dashboard prompt, you can add it to a dashboard.
Click the Answers link to navigate to the start page in Oracle BI Answers, and then click the
following button at the top of the selection pane:
New Dashboard Prompt...
Select the subject area that contains the column to use as the filter.
The Dashboard Prompt page appears.
NOTE: If the column is also included in a column filter prompt in an embedded request, its value
must be set to a filter in the Create/Edit Filter dialog box in order for the dashboard prompt to
filter the embedded request. Setting the value to Is Prompted will not prefilter the current
column. All columns in a dashboard prompt must come from the same subject area, and all
columns in the dashboard prompt must be included in the embedded requests that you want the
dashboard prompt to filter.
In the Scope drop-down list, specify whether the dashboard prompt applies to the entire
dashboard or a dashboard page.
To select a column to use as a filter in the dashboard prompt, click it in the selection pane.
You can add multiple columns to a dashboard prompt.
To remove a column from the prompt, click the Delete button for that column.
NOTE: The number of columns you include in a dashboard prompt can affect performance. For
example, columns that show values in a drop-down list require a request to the Oracle BI Server
to populate the list. In general, you should limit the number of columns to nine or less.
Click the Edit Formula button to display the Edit Column Formula dialog box where you can
modify the formula for the column. For more information, see Editing the Formula of a Column
on page 103.
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Select the Control type to indicate how users will select the value for the filter.
The choices are to select it from a calendar, a drop-down list, or a multiple list of values, or
type it into an edit box.
If you choose a drop-down list, then, in the Show list, indicate which values you want to appear
in the drop-down list.
You can show all values or develop an SQL statement to limit the drop-down list to certain
values.
To constrain the choices for a column depending on the selection the user makes from the
previous column, click the Constrain check box.
In the Default to list, choose the value that you want users to see initially.
You can show the report defaults, all choices, or a specific value. If you select a specific value,
a field appears in which you can type the value.
In the Set Variable list, you can choose whether or not to populate a variable for the dashboard
prompt using a server request variable or a presentation variable.
Leave the field blank not to declare a variable name for this prompt.
If you choose either Server or Presentation to declare a variable for this prompt, an additional
field appears where you declare the variable name.
NOTE: If you are creating a dashboard prompt for an Oracle BI Publisher report that receives
its data from and Oracle BI Server or SQL Server, the Set Variable must be set to
Presentation.
If you set a server variable it will override explicitly, the value of this variable set via the
initialization block.
For example, if you chose Presentation from the drop-down list, you might type
myFavoriteRegion to declare this as a presentation variable. A variable declared here can be
referenced in requests and iBots when viewed in a dashboard.
For more information about using variables, see the chapter about working with requests in
Oracle Business Intelligence Answers, Delivers, and Interactive Dashboards User Guide.
In the Label box, type a name to use for the filter label.
If you leave the Label box empty, the column label is used as the filter label.
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If you want the selected prompt and all other prompts that follow it to appear on a new line in
the filter, click the box in the Group list.
To preview how the prompt will appear on the dashboard, click the preview button (if available).
NOTE: If the preview button is not available, your Oracle BI Presentation Services administrator
has suppressed its display.
When you are finished creating a dashboard prompt, click the Save button.
At the Choose Folder dialog box, save the dashboard prompt to a personal or a shared folder,
and give the dashboard prompt a descriptive name.
You may also want to indicate in the name whether the dashboard prompt is for an entire
dashboard or for a dashboard page. If you are saving a dashboard prompt for use with an Oracle
BI Publisher report that receives its data from the Oracle BI Server or SQL Server, the dashboard
prompts name must match the name of the reports parameter.
NOTE: Prompts saved in personal folders are available only to you. Prompts saved in shared
folders are available to other users that have permission to access the folder.
On the Catalog tab in the selection pane, the prompt is visible in the folder in which you saved
it.
On the Dashboard tab, the prompt is visible on the dashboard or dashboard page to which
you added it.
In Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards, navigate to the dashboard or the specific dashboard page
to which you want to add the dashboard prompt, and then click the Dashboard Editor link.
The Dashboard Editor appears.
From the selection pane, in the Saved Content area, navigate to the folder that contains the
dashboard prompt you want to add.
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Drag and drop the dashboard prompt into a section in the dashboard page.
If the dashboard prompts scope is set to Dashboard, the dashboard prompt affects every page
of the dashboard, but does not appear on every dashboard page. If the dashboard prompts
scope is set to Page, the dashboard prompt affects only the pages to which you add it. If a
dashboard prompts scope is set to Dashboard, the value selected for the dashboard level prompt
will override values for page level dashboard prompts.
Related Topics
Using Column Filters in an Oracle BI Request on page 47
Adding Content to an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on page 196
At the Filter on Saved Request dialog box, select the appropriate relationship between the results
and the column to be filtered from the Relationship drop-down list.
Browse to navigate to the saved request, or type the complete path into the text box.
If the saved request contains a matching column name, it appears in the Use Values in Column
drop-down list. If you want to use another column, select it instead.
Click OK.
The filter appears in the Filters area on the Criteria tab.
Related Topic
Using Column Filters in an Oracle BI Request on page 47
64
Filtering Requests in Oracle BI Answers Editing the SQL for a Column Filter in an
Oracle BI Request
While in the column filter dialog, click the Advanced button, and then select the following menu
option:
Convert this filter to SQL
Type your modifications into the text box, and then click OK.
The filter appears in the Filters area on the Criteria tab.
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Filtering Requests in Oracle BI Answers Editing the SQL for a Column Filter in an
Oracle BI Request
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This chapter explains how to format results. After you run a request, the results are formatted using
default formatting rules. To help focus on blocks of related information and call attention to specific
data elements, you can specify additional formatting to apply to results. You can also customize the
cosmetic appearance of results and dashboards. This chapter contains the following topics:
Saving Your Oracle BI Answers Column Property Settings as the System-Wide Defaults on page 75
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In Oracle BI Answers, click the Properties button for a column to open the Column Properties
dialog box, and then click the Value Format tab.
Make your choices for font, cell, border, image, and additional formatting options.
For information, see Formatting Column Content In Oracle BI Answers on page 71.
For additional information about the cosmetic formatting available on this tab, see Applying
Cosmetic Formatting to Results and Dashboards on page 81.
On the Data Format tab, you can control the way the data is displayed by clicking the following
option:
Override Default Data Format
This option allows you to override the default display characteristics. The selections that you see
vary based on the data type. For example, if the column contains numeric data, you can choose
how you want the numbers treated, such as percentages, month names, or dates. You can
choose the number of decimal places to display, how to display negative numbers, the number
of digits to show, and the thousands separator to use. If your column contains text, you can
choose how to treat the text, such as plain text, HTML, or a link. Based on your selection, the
Custom Text Format text box displays the applicable HTML string used to display the data.
To use a custom format for text, choose Custom Text Format from the drop-down list, and
then type the custom format. You can type HTML calls that provide special formatting. You
can also type any valid HTML string, including JavaScript, VBScript, and so on.
NOTE: The first character must be an at sign character (@). This allows devices that are
incapable of displaying the custom format to display the data in the appropriate default
format.
For example, the following example HTML sets the column width and height in tables and
pivot tables. In the example, the text html enclosed in brackets ([html]) means to use HTML,
and the at sign (@)character represents the dynamic contents of the column.
@[html]<span style="width:200px; height:50px">@</span>
If you do not know HTML, JavaScript, VBScript, and so on, consult a third-party reference.
To create a custom numeric format, you can use the number sign (#) to include significant
digits, and the number zero (0) to include as many digits as specified, even if the number
does not contain that detail.
For example, specifying ##.# shows 12.34 as 12.3, and specifying ##.000 shows 12.34 as
12.340.
If you are editing a date/time column, the Data Format tab will display the Display Time Zone
drop-down list where you can select and apply a specific time zone to the column. Note the
following options:
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If you select the Default time zone option from the list and the administrator has specified a
system default time zone, the system default time zone will be used to display the time value
in the column.
If you select the Default time zone option from the list and the administrator has not specified
a system default time zone, the users preferred time zone will be used to display the time
value in the column.
If you select the Data time zone option from the list, the original data retrieved from the
database will be displayed.
If you select a specific time zone (for example, GMT +05:45 Kathmandu) and the
administrator has specified a system default time zone, the systems default time zone will
be converted into the specific time zone that you selected.
Assign alternate table and column headings and apply custom formatting to them.
Include the TimeZone icon. When you included this icon on a date/time column, a clock icon is
displayed on a time zone header in a table or pivot view. The user can click this icon to view the
name of the display time zone used in the column.
Specify the interaction that should occur when users work with the results, such as navigation
to other requests or dashboards.
Your selections apply only to the contents of the column for the request with which you are working.
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Properties button for a column to open the Column Properties
dialog box, and then click the Column Format tab.
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In Oracle BI Answers, click the Properties button for a column to open the Column Properties
dialog box, and then click the Column Format tab.
To change the text of the table or column heading, type a new heading into the appropriate text
box.
The heading will be used in this request instead of the default heading.
NOTE: You can also specify navigation to other requests or dashboards in the Column Heading
Interaction and Value Interaction areas. For more information, see To specify what happens when
users click the column on page 70.
To change the format of the table or column heading, click the Edit Format button next to the
text box.
The Edit Format dialog box appears.
Make your choices for font, cell, border, and advanced style formatting options.
For more information, see Formatting Column Content In Oracle BI Answers on page 71 and
Applying Cosmetic Formatting to Results and Dashboards on page 81.
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Properties button for a column to open the Column Properties
dialog box, and then click the Column Format tab.
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Properties button for a column to open the Column Properties
dialog box, and then click the Column Format tab.
To display repeating data only once and suppress duplicate rows, click Suppress.
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In Oracle BI Answers, click the Properties button for a column to open the Column Properties
dialog box, and then click the Column Format tab.
To specify what should happen when users click the column, click the appropriate option:
To allow navigation to other saved requests or dashboards (when a user clicks on a column
heading or a column value):
Select Navigate from the Type drop-down list (in the Column Heading Interaction area or the
Value Interaction area), and click the Add Navigation Target button.
Target and Caption fields are displayed.
Click the Browse button to open the Choose Request/Dashboard dialog box, navigate to the
request or dashboard, and click OK to select the target.
To allow navigation to multiple saved requests or dashboards, click the Add Navigation Target
button, and repeat the previous steps.
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The selections for horizontal and vertical alignment are similar to text justification selections in word
processors. Vertical alignment does not have any impact unless the column spans multiple rows of
other columns.
If you will save the settings as system defaults, the location must be accessible to all users. For more
information, see Saving Your Oracle BI Answers Column Property Settings as the System-Wide
Defaults on page 75.
In the Font area, make your selections for font family, size, color, style (such as bold), and any
effects to apply (such as underlining).
For horizontal alignment, choose one of the options described in the following table.
Option
Usage Notes
Left
Left justifies the data. This is the most common justification for text
data.
Right
Right justifies the data. This is the most common justification for
numeric data.
Center
Default
For vertical alignment, choose one of the options described in the following table.
Option
Usage Notes
Top
Bottom
Center
Default
In the Cell area, make your selection for an image to display inside the cell by clicking the Image
button.
The Graphics dialog opens.
To include a custom image, click the Custom Image option and specify the appropriate path
in the text box.
The image should be one that is accessible to all users who will view the results. Custom
images can be used for both conditional and unconditional results.
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To include an image distributed with Oracle BI Answers, use the graphics selection window
and make your selection by clicking the radio button next to the image.
The window shows images that are useful in conditional formatting, such as meters and trend
arrows. The left pane shows the categories of images. When you click on an image category,
the right pane shows the images in that category.
To specify the location of the image within the cell, use the Image Placement drop-down list
and select one of the options described in the following table.
Option
Usage Notes
Default
Displays any images in the default position, which is usually to the left
of the column data or heading.
Images Left
Images Right
Images Only
Displays only the image, and not the column data or heading.
In the Cell area, make your selection for a background color for the cell.
In the Border area, make your selections for the border position, color, and style of the cell.
To override style and class elements specified in Oracle BI style sheets, make your selections in
the Advanced Style Options (CSS) area:
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Several subtle conditional formatting differences exist between traditional tables and pivot tables.
Conditional formats that format one column based on the value of another column are not reflected
in a pivot table, but are reflected in a standard table. For example, setting the color of a region name
based on the sales in that region has no effect in a pivot table. However, setting the color of the sales
data based on the value of the sales data is reflected in a pivot table, as is setting the color of the
region name based on the actual name; for example, displaying a value of Eastern Region in bold
colored text.
NOTE: In pivot tables, conditions are evaluated against the values as calculated or aggregated by
the pivot table. Conditional formatting is applied based on the underlying value, even if you choose
the Show As options to show the data as percents or indexes.
Your selections apply only to the contents of the column for the request with which you are working.
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Properties button for a column to open the Column Properties
dialog box, and then click the Conditional Format tab.
Click the Add Condition button and select the desired column in the request for use in
constructing the condition.
The Create/Edit Filter dialog box opens.
NOTE: When you access the Create/Edit Filter dialog box from the Conditional Format tab, the
dialog box shows only the options that apply to conditional formats. For example, the Operator
drop-down list shows the subset of operators that are used in conditional formats, and you can
only apply presentation variables.
For information about using the Create/Edit Filter dialog box, see Using Column Filters in an
Oracle BI Request on page 47.
When you click OK at the Create/Edit Filter dialog box, the Edit Format dialog box appears.
Make your choices for font, cell, border, image, and advanced style formatting options.
For more information, see Formatting Column Content In Oracle BI Answers on page 71.
NOTE: If you specify an image as part of the conditional formatting, it appears conditionally in
the results.
Click OK when you are done to return to the Column Properties dialog box.
74
A third image to indicate a high rank for columns that contain 8, 9, or 10.
At the Graphics dialog box, selecting the Images Only image placement option would cause the
columns to appear with only images, and not the ranking numbers, in the results.
At the Column Properties dialog box in Oracle BI Answers, click the Save button and make your
selection.
NOTE: The Save button is available only to users with the appropriate permissions.
Related Topic
Applying Cosmetic Formatting to Results and Dashboards on page 81
Oracle BI Answers Custom Format Strings for Conversion into Hours on page 78
Oracle BI Answers Custom Format Strings for Conversion into Hours and Minutes on page 79
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Oracle BI Answers Custom Format Strings for Conversion into Hours, Minutes, and Seconds on
page 79
From the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, click the Format Column button for a column that
contains a timestamp, a date, or a time.
The Column Properties dialog box opens.
In the Date Format field, select Custom from the drop-down list.
In the Custom Date Format field, type the custom format string exactly as shown in the following
tables, including left and right bracket characters ([ ]).
NOTE: You must type the custom format string into the Custom Date Format field. Custom
format strings are not available for selection from the drop-down list.
Table 8.
Result
[FMT:dateShort]
Formats the date in the locales short date format. You can also type
[FMT:date].
[FMT:dateLong]
[FMT:dateInput]
Formats the date in a format acceptable for input back into the
system.
[FMT:time]
[FMT:timeHourMin]
Formats the time in the locales time format but omits the seconds.
[FMT:timeInput]
Formats the time in a format acceptable for input back into the
system.
[FMT:timeInputHourMin]
Formats the time in a format acceptable for input back into the
system, but omits the seconds.
[FMT:timeStampShort]
76
Table 8.
Result
[FMT:timeStampLong]
[FMT:timeStampInput]
[FMT:timeHour]
Formats the hour field only in the locales format, such as 8 PM.
Table 9.
Result
[FMT:dateODBC]
[FMT:timeODBC]
[FMT:timeStampODBC]
[FMT:dateTyped]
Displays the word date and then shows the date, in standard ODBC
yyyy-mm-dd format. The date is shown within single quote
characters ().
[FMT:timeTyped]
Displays the word time and then shows the time, in standard ODBC
hh:mm:ss format. The time is shown within single quote characters
().
[FMT:timeStampTyped]
77
Integral fields hold integers that represent the month of the year or the day of the week. For months,
1 represents January, 2 represents February, and so on, with 12 representing December. For days of
the week, 1 represents Sunday, 2 represents Monday, and so on, with 7 representing Saturday.
Table 10.
Result
[MMM]
[MMMM]
[DDD]
[DDDD]
Fields that contain integers or real numbers that represent the time that has elapsed since the
beginning of the day (12:00 AM).
Fields where the output is in [FMT:timeHour] format, described in Table 8 on page 76. (This
format displays the hour field only in the locales format, such as 8 PM.)
Table 11.
Data Conversion
Format String
Result
[FMT:timeHour]
This assumes that the value represents the number of hours that have
elapsed since the beginning of the day, and formats the number of hours
into an hh display, where hh is the number of hours. Fractions are
dropped from the value. For example, a value of 2 is formatted as 2 AM,
and a value of 12.24 as 12 PM.
[FMT:timeHour(min)]
This assumes that the value represents the number of minutes that
have elapsed since the beginning of the day, and formats the number of
minutes into an hh display, where hh is the number of hours. Fractions
are dropped from the value. For example, a value of 2 is formatted as
12 AM, and a value of 363.10 as 06 AM.
[FMT:timeHour(sec)]
This assumes that the value represents the number of seconds that
have elapsed since the beginning of the day, and formats the number of
seconds into an hh display, where hh is the number of hours. Fractional
hours are dropped from the value. For example, a value of 600 is
formatted as 12 AM, a value of 3600 as 1 AM, and a value of a value of
61214.30 as 5 PM.
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Table 12.
Data Conversion
Format String
Result
[FMT:timeHourMin]
This assumes that the value represents the number of minutes that
have elapsed since the beginning of the day, and converts the value
into an hh:mm display, where hh is the number of hours and mm is
the number of minutes. Fractions are dropped from the value. For
example, a value of 12 is formatted as 12:12 AM, a value of 73 as
1:13 AM, and a value of 750 as 12:30 PM.
[FMT:timeHourMin(sec)]
This assumes that the value represents the number of seconds that
have elapsed since the beginning of the day, and converts the value
into an hh:mm display, where hh is the number of hours and mm is
the number of minutes. Fractions are dropped from the value. For
example, a value of 60 is formatted as 12:01 AM, a value of 120 as
12:02 AM, and a value of 43200 as 12:00 PM.
[FMT:timeHourMin(hour)]
This assumes that the value represents the number of hours that have
elapsed since the beginning of the day, and converts the number of
hours into an hh:mm display, where hh is the number of hours and
mm is the remaining number of minutes. For example, a value of 0 is
formatted as 12:00 AM, a value of 1.5 as 1:30 AM, and a value of
13.75 as 1:45 PM.
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They can also be used where the output is in [FMT:time] format, described in Oracle BI Answers
General Custom Format Strings on page 76. (This format displays the time in the locales time
format.)
Table 13.
Result
[FMT:time]
This assumes that the value represents the number of seconds that
have elapsed since the beginning of the day, and converts the value
into an hh:mm:ss display, where hh is the number of hours, mm is
the number of minutes, and ss is the number of seconds. For
example, a value of 60 is formatted as 12:01:00 AM, a value of 126
as 12:02:06 AM, and a value of 43200 as 12:00:00 PM.
[FMT:time(min)]
This assumes that the value represents the number of minutes that
have elapsed since the beginning of the day, and converts the value
into an hh:mm:ss display, where hh is the number of hours, mm is
the number of minutes, and ss is the number of seconds. For
example, a value of 60 is formatted as 1:00:00 AM, a value of 126
as 2:06:00 AM, and a value of 1400 as 11:20:00 PM.
[FMT:time(hour)]
This assumes that the value represents the number of hours that
have elapsed since the beginning of the day, and converts the value
into an hh:mm:ss display, where hh is the number of hours, mm is
the number of minutes, and ss is the number of seconds. For
example, a value of 6.5 is formatted as 6:30:00 AM, and a value of
12 as 12:00:00 PM.
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Using a Saved Request as a Style Template for the Cosmetic Appearance of Other Requests on
page 83
In the Dashboard Editor, click the Properties button for a column or section and choose the
Format Column or Format Section option, respectively.
In Oracle BI Answers, from a view that supports cosmetic formatting, click the cosmetic
formatting button.
NOTE: In the table view, you can also click the format column button and use the Value
Format tab. In the pivot table view, you can also click the section properties button and use
the Section Properties tab.
In the Font area, make your selections for font family, size, color, style (such as bold), and any
effects to apply (such as underlining).
81
For horizontal alignment, choose one of the options described in the following table.
Option
Usage Notes
Left
Left justifies the data. This is the most common justification for text
data.
Right
Right justifies the data. This is the most common justification for
numeric data.
Center
Default
For vertical alignment, choose one of the options described in the following table.
Option
Usage Notes
Top
Bottom
Center
Default
In the Border area, make your selections for the border position, color, and style of the cell.
TIP: You can select or deselect custom borders by clicking the top, bottom, left, and right
borders near the Position drop-down list.
To override style and class elements specified in Oracle BI style sheets, make your selections in
the Advanced Style Options (CSS) area:
NOTE: The advanced style formatting options are for use by users who know how to work with
cascading style sheets.
82
Select the object whose formatting you want to copy, such as a row, column, or table cell.
Access the cosmetic formatting dialog box and click the copy formatting button.
Select the object to which you want to paste the formatting, access the cosmetic formatting
dialog box, and click the paste formatting button.
Access the cosmetic formatting dialog box for the object, and then click the clear formatting
button.
Click the import view formatting button near the top of the workspace:
At the Choose Request dialog box, navigate to saved request and click OK.
Click the Saved Results link, or the dashboard preview button to view the results (if available).
NOTE: If the preview button is not available, your Oracle BI Presentation Services administrator
has suppressed its display.
83
84
This chapter describes how to create and modify Oracle BI views. It contains the following topics:
Assembling Views for Display on a Dashboard Using Oracle BI Compound Layout View on page 96
Showing Results in Pivot Tables Using Oracle BI Pivot Table View on page 125
Showing Filters Applied to Results Using Oracle BI Filters View on page 144
Allowing Users to Change Columns in Requests Using Oracle BI Column Selector View on page 144
Allowing Users to Select a Specific View Using View Selector View on page 145
Showing Results in a Funnel Chart Using Oracle BI Funnel Chart View on page 146
Adding Narrative Text to Results Using Oracle BI Narrative View on page 148
Showing Results in a Scrolling Ticker Using Oracle BI Ticker View on page 151
Adding Text to Results Using Oracle BI Static Text View on page 154
Showing the Logical SQL for a Request Using Oracle BI Logical SQL View on page 157
Creating Segments in Oracles Siebel Marketing Using Oracle BI Create Segment View on page 158
Creating Lists of Contacts and Accounts Using Oracle BI Create Target List View on page 159
85
Formatting Data Types and Configuring Data-Driven Navigation Using Oracle BI Custom Formatters
on page 90
86
Table 14.
View Name
Description
Compound Layout
Use the compound layout view to assemble different views for display on
a dashboard.
On the Criteria tab, you can click the following button to access the
compound layout view.
Use the title view to add a title, a subtitle, a logo, a link to a custom online
help page, and timestamps to the results.
For more information, see Adding Titles to Results Using Oracle BI Title
View on page 98.
Table
Use the table view to show results in a standard table. Users can navigate
and drill down in the results. You can add totals, customize headings, and
change the formula or aggregation rule for a column. You can also control
the appearance of a column and its contents, and specify formatting to
apply only if the contents of the column meet certain conditions.
On the Criteria tab, you can click the following button to access the table
view.
For more information, see Adding Tables to Results Using Oracle BI Table
View on page 100.
87
Table 14.
View Name
Description
Chart
Use the chart view to drag and drop columns to a layout chart. You can
customize the title, legend location, axis titles, and data labels. You can
customize the size and scale of the chart, and control colors using a style
sheet.
Oracle BI Answers supports a variety of standard chart types, including
bar charts, column charts, line charts, area charts, pie charts, and scatter
charts. Custom chart subtypes include two-and-three-dimensional,
absolute, clustered, stacked, combination, and custom.
On the Criteria tab, you can click the following button to access the chart
view.
For more information, see Showing Results in Charts Using Oracle BI Chart
View on page 107.
Pivot Table
Use the pivot table view to take row, column, and section headings and
swap them around to obtain different perspectives. You can drag and drop
headings to pivot results, preview them, and apply the settings. Users can
navigate through pivot tables and drill down into information. Users can
create complex pivot tables that show aggregate and nonrelated totals
next to the pivoted data, allowing for flexible analysis. For an interactive
result set, elements can be placed in pages, allowing users to choose
elements.
On the Criteria tab, you can click the following button to access the pivot
table view.
For more information, see Showing Results in Pivot Tables Using Oracle BI
Pivot Table View on page 125.
Gauge
Use the gauge view to show results as gauges, such as dial, bar, and bulbstyle gauges.
For more information, see Showing Results as Gauges Using Oracle BI
Gauge View on page 137.
Filters
Use the filters view to show the filters in effect for a request. Filters allow
you to constrain a request to obtain results that answer a particular
question.
For more information, see Showing Filters Applied to Results Using Oracle
BI Filters View on page 144.
88
Table 14.
View Name
Description
Column Selector
Use the column selector view to permit users to dynamically change which
columns appear in results. This allows users to analyze data along several
dimensions. By changing the facts, users can dynamically alter the
content of the results.
For more information, see Allowing Users to Change Columns in Requests
Using Oracle BI Column Selector View on page 144.
View Selector
Use the View Selector view to select a specific view of the results from
among the saved views. When placed on a dashboard, the view selector
appears as a drop-down list from which users can make a selection.
For more information, see Allowing Users to Select a Specific View Using
View Selector View on page 145.
Legend
Use the Legend view to document the meaning of special formatting used
in results, such as the meaning of custom colors applied to gauges.
For more information, see Adding a Legend to Results Using Oracle BI
Legend View on page 146.
Funnel Chart
Narrative
Use the narrative view to show the results as one or more paragraphs of
text. You can type in a sentence with placeholders for each column in the
results, and specify how rows should be separated.
For more information, see Adding Narrative Text to Results Using Oracle BI
Narrative View on page 148.
Ticker
Use the ticker view to show the results of the request as a ticker or
marquee, similar in style to the stock tickers that run across many
financial and news sites on the Internet. You can control what information
is presented and how it scrolls across the page.
For more information, see Showing Results in a Scrolling Ticker Using
Oracle BI Ticker View on page 151.
Static Text
Use the static text view to include static text in the results. You can use
HTML to add banners, tickers, ActiveX objects, Java applets, links,
instructions, descriptions, graphics, and so on, in the results.
For more information, see Adding Text to Results Using Oracle BI Static Text
View on page 154.
89
Table 14.
View Name
Description
No Results
The no results view allows you to specify explanatory text to appear if the
request does not return any results.
For more information, see Alerting Users to No Data Using Oracle BI No
Results View on page 157.
Logical SQL
Use the logical SQL view to show the SQL generated for the request. This
view is useful for trainers and Oracle BI administrators, and is usually not
included in results for typical users.
You cannot modify this view, except to delete it.
For information about working with the logical SQL view, see Showing the
Logical SQL for a Request Using Oracle BI Logical SQL View on page 157.
Create Segment
The create segment view is for users of the Oracles Siebel Marketing
Version 7.7 (or higher) operational application. Use it to display a Create
Segment link in the results. Users can click this link to create a segment
in their Oracle Siebel Marketing operational application, based on the
results data.
For information about working with the create segment view, see Creating
Segments in Oracles Siebel Marketing Using Oracle BI Create Segment View
on page 158.
The create target list view is for users of Oracles Siebel Life Sciences
operational application integrated with Oracles Siebel Life Sciences
Analytics applications. Use it to create a Create Target List link in the
results. Users can click this link to create a target list, based on the results
data, in their Oracle Siebel operational application.
For information about working with the create target list view, see
Creating Lists of Contacts and Accounts Using Oracle BI Create Target List
View on page 159.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Performing Common Tasks When
Working with Oracle BI Views
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
Previewing How an Oracle BI View Will Appear on an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on page 93
Accessing the Compound Layout View from Another Oracle BI View on page 95
At the Choose Folder dialog box, choose a personal or shared folder in which to save the view.
To specify a subfolder, perform one of the following actions:
Navigate to it.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Performing Common Tasks When
Working with Oracle BI Views
Click OK.
92
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Performing Common Tasks When
Working with Oracle BI Views
From any view in Oracle BI Answers, click the following button near the top of the workspace:
NOTE: If the preview button is not available, your Oracle BI Presentation Services administrator
has suppressed its display.
The dashboard preview appears in a new window.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Performing Common Tasks When
Working with Oracle BI Views
For information about how the refresh feature works, see Refreshing an Oracle BI Interactive
Dashboard or Oracle BI Request on page 18.
The workspace displays the Criteria tab, where you can create the new request.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Performing Common Tasks When
Working with Oracle BI Views
In the Open dialog box, navigate to the request and click OK.
The workspace displays the Criteria tab, where you can modify the new request.
The compound layout view appears in the workspace. The view that you were working with
appears in the workspace at the compound layout view, together with any other views.
Choose Specialize View, and then make a selection from the list.
HTML
HTML is typically used for dashboards. A specialized HTML view has (HTML) appended to its
name.
95
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Assembling Views for Display on
a Dashboard Using Oracle BI Compound Layout View
Delivery
Delivery is typically used for iBot content delivered to users delivery devices. A specialized
Delivery view has (Delivery) appended to its name.
Related Topic
Applying Cosmetic Formatting to Results and Dashboards on page 81
Adding, Deleting, and Rearranging Oracle BI Result Views in Oracle BI Answers on page 96
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work.
At the Criteria tab or the Results tab, click the following button:
You can also click the Results tab and choose Compound Layout from the views drop-down list.
The compound layout view appears in the workspace.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Assembling Views for Display on
a Dashboard Using Oracle BI Compound Layout View
Click the following button in the Add View area near the top of the workspace:
Place the cursor just inside the top edge of the view to be rearranged.
Click and hold the left mouse button (if configured) on the view.
The view is displayed as a transparent moveable object.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Titles to Results Using
Oracle BI Title View
The workspace changes to show the options and settings for the view.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new title view, click the Results tab and choose Title from the views drop-down list.
To edit an existing title view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the views
drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the title view.
The workspace shows the options and settings for the view.
In the Title text box, type the text to display as the title.
NOTE: The Title text box supports text, server variables (e.g. @{user.id},
@{system.CurrentTime}), and presentation variables (e.g. @{myFavoriteRegion}). Do not
include HTML markup.
For more information about presentation variables, see Using a Saved Oracle BI Request as a
Filter on page 64.
If you do not specify a title, the name of the saved request is used as the title. For unsaved
requests, the Title text box is blank.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Titles to Results Using
Oracle BI Title View
If you do not want the saved name of the request to appear, clear the following check box:
Display Saved Name
(Optional) In the Subtitle text box, type the text to display as a subtitle.
The subtitle text will follow the actual title, on a new line.
If you want to add additional formatting to the title or subtitle, perform the following actions:
Click the edit buttons to the right of the Title and Subtitle dialog boxes.
Make your choices for font, cell, and border options, and then click OK.
NOTE: If you type a new caption, it replaces the original title or subtitle.
If you want to provide a link to customized help or other information related to the request, type
the appropriate URL in the Help URL text box.
The URL should be one that is accessible to all users who will view this request.
If you want to display a logo image or other graphic, specify the appropriate path in the Logo
text box.
The image or graphic should be one that is accessible to all users who will view this request.
You can use a function called fmap to reference images located in the current Analytics style
directory. This packages custom graphics with the style and makes them portable.
The fmap syntax is as follows:
fmap:location/image_name
where:
fmap:
location
The path to the folder in the current style directory (s_stylename), such
as Images. For example:
s_oracle/Images
NOTE: Logo images and graphics located in the current style directory
should all be stored in the same folder.
Required separator.
image_name
If you want to display the date or time when the request started to execute, select one of the
timestamp options from the Started Time drop-down list.
When you are done, you can save the request with the title view.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Tables to Results Using
Oracle BI Table View
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new table view, click the Results tab and choose Table from the views drop-down list.
You can also add a table view by clicking the Table button at the compound layout view or at
the Criteria tab.
To edit an existing table view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the views
drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the table view.
The workspace shows the options and settings for the view.
To view the buttons for working with each column individually, select the option to show header
toolbars.
To specify the sort order for one or more columns that appear in a request, click the Order By
button for a column.
You can order results by more than one column. If you choose more than one column, the order
is shown on the Order By button. For more information about sorting, see Specifying the Sort
Order for Columns in Oracle BI Requests on page 35.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Tables to Results Using
Oracle BI Table View
To add a grand total for the report, click the Grand Totals button at the top of the workspace
and make sure the option Report-Based Total is selected.
To add totals for an individual column, click the Total By button for that column and make
sure the option Report-Based Total is selected.
The Total By button is available only for columns that can be totaled.
NOTE: If the option Report-Based Total is not selected, the Oracle BI Server will calculate the
total based on the entire result set, before applying any filters to the measures.
To insert custom text into a total heading, click the Total By button and select the Format
Labels option to display the Edit Format dialog box. Enter the custom text into the Caption
field as follows:
The double quote syntax is not limited to a single character. In general you can use a
backslash escaped string inside double quotes. For example:
"1234567890\\abc\\d\"x\"yz!@#$%^&*()-+=_{}[];:'|?/><,.` ~"
is displayed as:
1234567890\abc\d"x"yz!@#$%^&*()-+=_{}[];:'|?/><,.` ~
To add custom headings or edit the formula for a column, click the Edit Formula button.
The Edit Column Formula dialog box appears.
At the Column Formula tab, you can perform the following actions:
To specify custom headings, select the option Custom Headings and type new heading text
into the appropriate location.
To edit the formula for the column, type it into the Column Formula area, or use the button
bar to add operators, functions, filters, columns, and variables where required. For more
information, see Editing the Formula of a Column on page 103.
For more information about using SQL functions, click the help button.
To change the aggregation rule for the column, make a selection from the drop-down list.
At the Bins tab, you can combine multiple values or ranges of values from a given column into
bins.
10 1
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Tables to Results Using
Oracle BI Table View
To edit the properties for a column, or to specify formatting to apply if the contents of the column
meet certain conditions, click the Format Column button.
The Edit Column Format dialog box appears, where you can make your selections:
For information about formatting columns and adding navigation as part of the column
format, see Using Column Formatting Functions in Oracle BI Answers on page 67.
For information about adding conditional formatting, see Applying Conditional Formatting to
Column Content in Oracle BI Answers on page 73.
When you are done, you can save the request with the table view.
At the table view, click the following Write Back Properties button:
Click OK.
Click the Properties button for the write-back column to open the Column Properties dialog box,
and then click the Column Format tab.
Under Value Interaction, in the Type list, click Write Back, and click OK.
When you are done, you can save the request with the table view.
To specify paging controls and the number of rows per page, display column and
table headings, apply green bar styling, and enable column sorting in dashboards
1
At the table view, click the Table View Properties button near the top of the workspace.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Editing the Formula of a Column
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
To add operators and characters to the Column Formula area using the button bar: on page 103
To add functions to the Column Formula area using the button bar: on page 104
To add column expressions to the Column Formula area using the button bar: on page 104
To add variables to the Column Formula area using the button bar: on page 104
To add filters to the Column Formula area using the button bar: on page 105
To add case statements to the column formula area using the Bins tab on page 106
In the Table View (or in the Columns area on the Criteria tab), click the Edit Formula button for
the column whose formula you want to edit.
In the Edit Formula dialog box, display the Column Formula tab.
To add operators and characters to the Column Formula area using the button bar:
1
In the Table View (or in the Columns area on the Criteria tab), click the Edit Formula button for
the column whose formula you want to edit.
In the Edit Formula dialog box, display the Column Formula tab.
Click the first eight buttons in the button bar to insert the following operators/characters into the
text area:
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To add functions to the Column Formula area using the button bar:
1
In the Table View (or in the Columns area on the Criteria tab), click the Edit Formula button for
the column whose formula you want to edit.
In the Edit Formula dialog box, display the Column Formula tab.
Click the Function button to display the Insert Function dialog box, where you can select
functions from a tree of function groups.
Click on a function name to show the syntax of the selected function and its description in the
lower part of the dialog.
Click the OK button, to dismiss the secondary dialog and insert the selected functions expression
into the Column Formula area.
If some text is selected in the Column Formula area when you click the Function button, the
selected text is incorporated into the inserted function formula.
If no text is selected in the column formula when you click the Function button, the functions
expression is inserted and the first argument (denoted by tokens expr or expr1) is automatically
selected.
To add column expressions to the Column Formula area using the button bar:
1
In the Table View (or in the Columns area on the Criteria tab), click the Edit Formula button for
the column whose formula you want to edit.
In the Edit Formula dialog box, display the Column Formula tab.
Click the Column button to select a column name from a menu of the available column names
that are already selected into the criteria of the current report.
When you select a column name from the menu, the columns expression is inserted into the
Column Formula area.
To add variables to the Column Formula area using the button bar:
1
In the Table View (or in the Columns area on the Criteria tab), click the Edit Formula button for
the column whose formula you want to edit.
In the Edit Formula dialog box, display the Column Formula tab.
Click the Variable button to display a menu that enables you to select a Session, Repository or
Presentation variable.
When you select a variable from the menu, the Insert Variable dialog box is displayed.
Type the name of the variable (and optional default value if applicable).
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Session variables must be preceded by NQ_SESSION and separated by a period, and both the
NQ_SESSION portion and the session variable name must be contained within parentheses.
If the variable name contains a space, the name must be enclosed in double quotes ( " ). For
example, to use the value of a session variable named REGION, the following example shows the
correct syntax:
"SalesSubjectArea"."Customer"."Region" = VALUEOF(NQ_SESSION.REGION)
Presentation variables are referred to using their name, and optionally by a default value.
The appropriate formula expression for the variable is created and inserted into the Column
Formula area. The example below shows the formula for a Presentation variable named blah with
a default value of 10.
Sales Measures.Dollars + @{blah}{10}
For more information about using variables, see the chapter about working with requests in Oracle
Business Intelligence Answers, Delivers, and Interactive Dashboards User Guide.
To add filters to the Column Formula area using the button bar:
1
In the Table View (or in the Columns area on the Criteria tab), click the Edit Formula button for
the column whose formula you want to edit.
In the Edit Formula dialog box, display the Column Formula tab.
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Click the Filter button to display the Insert Filter dialog containing a complex filter editor.
The filter is initially blank, but you populate the filter by clicking a column in the selection pane
to add a column filter and create a filter expression.
Click a column name in the selection pane to display the Create/Edit Filter dialog.
For more information about using this dialog, see Using Column Filters in an Oracle BI Request
on page 47.
Click OK to dismiss the Create/Edit Filter dialog when you finish creating the filter expression.
The resulting filter expression is added to the complex filter definition in the Insert Filter dialog.
The filter expression will be in the form:
FILTER(<expression> USING <filter_expression>)
Where:
<expression> is an expression that contains at least one measure. For example, the
expression "sales + 1" is allowed if "sales" is a measure. The expression "productid" is
not allowed if "productid" is a scalar attribute.
NOTE: If you selected some text in the Column Formula area before clicking the Filter button, it
is incorporated in the inserted filter expression, replacing the expression token. For example, if
you had selected Sales Measures.Dollars before clicking the Filter button. A complex filter
expression might replace the filter_expressions token as follows:
FILTER(Sales Measures.Dollars USING ((Periods.Year = 1999) AND ((Markets.District =
CINCINNATI DISTRICT) OR (Markets.District = DENVER DISTRICT)))).
Click on other column names in the selection pane to define more expressions to build up a
complex filter statement involving multiple expressions.
Use the AND/OR link to specify the relationship between multiple expressions.
To add case statements to the column formula area using the Bins tab
1
In the Table View (or in the Columns area on the Criteria tab), click the Edit Formula button for
the column whose formula you want to edit.
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Click the Add Bin button to display the Create/Edit Filter dialog.
Use the Create/Edit Filter dialog to create a filter expression to display as a CASE statement in
the Column Formula area of the Edit Column Formula dialog.
For more information about using this dialog, see Using Column Filters in an Oracle BI Request
on page 47.
Click OK to dismiss the Create/Edit Filter dialog and display new or updated filter expressions in
the Bins tab.
Click the Column Formula tab to view filter expressions as CASE statements.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
Controlling the Display of Grid Lines in Oracle BI Chart View on page 114
Specifying the Location of the Legend in Oracle BI Chart View on page 115
Setting Colors for Background, Text, and Borders in Oracle BI Chart View on page 115
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Selecting the Columns to Display as Axes in Oracle BI Chart View on page 116
Specifying Axis Titles and Labels in Oracle BI Chart View on page 119
Specifying What Happens When a User Clicks a Chart in Oracle BI on page 120
NOTE: Oracle BI uses a third-party charting engine. The type of the chart, its size, and the number
of elements charted can affect whether axes or legends appear. This is constrained by the amount
of available space on the Web browser page. Sometimes, by adjusting the width and height controls,
it is possible to get undisplayed axes and legend values to appear.
Table 15.
Description
Area
An area graph is similar to a line graph, but with the areas under the
lines filled in. Area graphs show the percentage of the whole that each
variable comprises.
Area graphs are useful for observing changes in cumulative value or
percentage over time; for example, by comparing groups on certain
measurements such as outcome, and displaying group trends.
Horizontal Bar
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Table 15.
Description
Bubble
Vertical Bar
Line
A line bar combination graph plots two sets of data with different
ranges, one set as bars, and one set as lines overlaid on the bars.
Line bar combination charts are useful for showing trend relationships
between data sets.
TIP: You can specify any mix of bars and columns, but there must be
one of each. Specifying all columns as lines works, but if you want only
bars, use a bar chart. (When only bars are selected for this chart type,
some column selections may be drawn as lines.)
Pareto
A pareto graph is a form of bar chart and line chart that displays criteria
in descending order. In this graph type, the line shows a cumulative
total of the percentages.
Pareto graphs are useful for identifying significant elements, such as
best and worst or most and least.
Pie
Radar
A radar graph plots the same information as a bar graph, but instead
displays data radiating from the center of the graph. Each data element
has its own value axis.
Radar graphs are useful for examining overlap and distribution.
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Table 15.
Description
Scatter
Step
Your selection for the chart graph determines the chart subtypes that are available from the Type
drop-down list. Not all chart types have subtypes; for example, bubble and radar graphs have no
subtypes. Charts subtypes default to the 3D option, if available. Depending on the chart type
selection, subtype options may include the following:
Your selection for the chart type also determines the styles that are available from the Style dropdown list. Not all chart types have styles. The style defaults to solid fill, if available. Depending on
the chart type selection, styles for charts may include the following:
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Table 16.
Description
Sets general properties for the chart, such as its title, whether data labels
appear, and the chart size.
For more information, see Specifying General Chart Properties in Oracle BI
Chart View on page 113.
Controls the display of axis title and data labels at the bottom of the chart
and to the left of the chart.
For more information, see Specifying Axis Titles and Labels in Oracle BI
Chart View on page 119.
Sets the axis scaling properties, the number of tick marks, and the scale
type.
For more information, see Setting Axis Scaling Options in Oracle BI Chart
View on page 116.
Controls the display of grid lines on the chart.
For more information, see Controlling the Display of Grid Lines in Oracle BI
Chart View on page 114.
Sets the location of the legend, and provides options for resizing the
legend.
For more information, see Specifying the Location of the Legend in Oracle
BI Chart View on page 115.
Sets background, text, and border colors.
For more information, see Setting Colors for Background, Text, and Borders
in Oracle BI Chart View on page 115.
Controls how users interact with the chart when they click it, such as
drilling down to lower-level data, or navigating automatically to a related
saved request or dashboard.
For more information, see Specifying What Happens When a User Clicks a
Chart in Oracle BI on page 120.
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Table 16.
Description
Allows users to format the visual appearance of chart series such as color,
line width, and line symbols.
For more information, see Formatting the Visual Appearance of Charts on
page 121.
For pie charts, allows users to make selections for data labels.
For more information, see Making Selections for Data Labels in Pie Charts
on page 124.
For bubble charts, allows users to control the size of the bubble with a
slider bar.
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new chart view, click the Results tab and choose Chart from the views drop-down
list.
You can also add a chart view by clicking the Chart button at the compound layout view or
at the Criteria tab.
To edit an existing chart view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the views
drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the chart view.
The workspace shows the options and settings for the view.
Make your selections for the chart graph, subtype, and style.
Your selection for the graph type determines the available choices for the subtype and style.
When no subtypes or styles are available, the drop-down lists become unavailable.
As you make selections from the drop-down lists, the chart view changes to reflect your
selections.
To add a column to the chart, click it in the selection pane, or add it at the Criteria tab.
To delete a column from the chart, click the Criteria tab and click the Delete button for the
column.
Use the buttons at the top of the chart view page to specify additional chart settings.
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To remove changes and start from the original chart, click the Clear button.
To resize the chart, use the vertical and horizontal slide bars.
When you are done, you can save the request with the chart view.
Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
To enter a custom title for the chart, click the Custom Title check box and enter the title text for
the chart.
To format the chart title text, click the formatting button (next to the title field)
The Text Format dialog box appears, make your changes as follows, and click OK.
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Color - Click to display the Color Selector dialog box, and select a color or enter the
hexadecimal code for the required color.
Truncate - Enter a number to specify how many characters of the text to display.
To specify how to show data labels, select an option from the Show data labels drop-down list as
follows:
Default (On rollover) - Display data labels using default behavior, in this example the default
behavior is shown in brackets (On rollover).
To format the chart label text, click the formatting button to display the Text Format dialog box,
make your changes and click OK (see previous step for details).
Click the Override Default Data Format check box, to override the default numeric format in
which data labels are currently displayed, and make your selections using the following options:
Negative Format - displays negative data labels using either the minus sign, or a parenthesis.
Decimal Places - displays numbers using the specified number of decimal places (to a
maximum of 6 decimal places).
NOTE: The numeric format is inherited from the representative column in the criteria tab. If two
or more columns are selected for the same axis, numeric formatting is not inherited.
To specify the size of the chart, enter numbers into the Width and the Height fields.
Click OK.
The chart view refreshes. The chart may resize to accommodate your selections.
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Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
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Table 17.
Axis
Level axis (for scatter and bubble graphs)
Horizontal axis
Vertical axis (for a radar graph, this is the fact axis)
Legend axis
Overlay axis
Radius axis
Pie Values axis (for a radar graph, this is the radar axis)
In the columns area to the left of the chart, click the appropriate check box for one of the axis
buttons to display that column as the corresponding axis in the chart.
The axis buttons change depending on the type of graph selected from the Graph drop-down list.
To add a column to the chart, click it in the selection pane, and then set it as an axis.
This is equivalent to adding the column to the request at the Criteria tab.
To display the unit of measure on an axis, click the appropriate check box.
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Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
When you select Default, the system chooses the scale and sets the axis to zero (0) for
positive numbers.
When you select Zoom to Data Range, the system chooses the scale. It evaluates the range
of values on the axis, and chooses appropriate minimum and maximum values for the scale.
This is useful when charting a set of large values that are all within a small percentage of
each other. The chart zooms in on the values so differences are more easily distinguished.
You can also manually set the axis scaling values to specific numbers.
The chart view refreshes. The chart may resize to accommodate your selections.
Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
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Click the Add button to add the first scale marker and make your selections for the marker.
Advanced options include setting the scale to a static value, a variable, a particular column name,
or as the result of an SQL query. For more information about the types of scale markers and using
the advanced options, see the procedures that follow this one.
Column Name - Based only on a measure column value, which could yield numerous values, and
only the first value is applied.
SQL Query - Based on the results of a SQL query. The results could be a table but only the first
row, and first column cell value is applied.
NOTE: If any of the above do not have a valid value, the scale marker is ignored.
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Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
To update axis titles and labels, select either the Left or the Bottom tab.
To enter a custom axis title for the chart, click the Custom Title check box and enter the title text
for the chart.
To format the axis title text, click the formatting button (next to the title field).
The Text Format dialog box appears, make your changes as follows, and click OK.
Color - Click to display the Color Selector dialog box, and select a color or enter the
hexadecimal code for the required color.
Truncate - Enter a number to specify how many characters of the text to display.
Rotate labels - Click the check box and select a value from the drop-down list to specify the
degree of rotation to display the axis scale labels (values available through 180 degrees).
Abbreviate - click the check box and select a value from the drop-down list to display an
abbreviation following each axis label.
To format the scale label text, click the formatting button to display the Text Format dialog box,
make your changes and click OK (see earlier step for details).
(Only applies to Left tab) Click the Override Default Data Format check box, to override the
default numeric format in which axis scale labels are currently displayed, and make your
selections using the following options:
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Negative Format - displays negative labels using either the minus sign, or a parenthesis.
(Only applies to Bottom tab) Click the Stagger labels check box to display labels so that they do
not overlap.
(Only applies to Bottom tab) Click the Skip labels check box to display an alternate set of labels.
10 Click OK.
The chart view refreshes.
Drill. Allows the user to drill down to more detailed information. This is the default interaction.
Navigate. Allows the user to navigate to one or more saved requests or dashboards.
Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
Select the Navigate radio button, and click the Add Navigation Target button.
Target and Caption fields are displayed.
If you want users to navigate to other saved requests or dashboards, click the Browse button to
open the Choose Request/Dashboard dialog box, navigate to the target request or dashboard,
and click OK to select the target.
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To allow navigation to multiple saved requests or dashboards, click the Add Navigation Target
button, and repeat the previous steps.
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Click OK.
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Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
Click the Positional tab to format the appearance of a chart series based on its position.
The available choices depend upon the chart type. For example:
To restore a chart series to its default settings, reselect the Use Default check box.
To add a new format series control, click the Add button. Even if the current chart does not
use this series, it will be used if it is needed (such as for drilling).
To return all chart series to their default values, click the Clear All button.
This also removes all added format series positions.
To change colors, click the color box to access the Color Selector dialog box.
To change other chart series attributes, click the desired tab and select bar or line attributes
from the options presented.
Click the Conditional tab to format the appearance of a chart based on a condition applied to a
column value or a range of column values.
To apply a condition to a column value or a range of column values for a chart:
Click the Add Condition button and select the column to which you want to apply a condition.
The Create/Edit Filter dialog box is displayed.
Select the operator and enter a column value, or a range of column values for this condition.
To select a color in which to display a chart series when the condition is met, click the Color
button to access the Color Selector dialog box.
To update the condition, click the Filter button to display the Create/Edit Filter dialog box.
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To rearrange the order in which conditions are applied, click the up or down arrows next to each
condition.
Conditions can only be created from columns that are being used by the chart.
When format conditions conflict with each other, conflicting conditions are prioritized in the
following order:
1. Measure - Typically the Y axis that is used to show the value of an intersection point.
2. Legend - A way to group a series of data points that can be plotted on a graph.
3. Category - Typically the X-axis that is used to separate the values being measured.
4. Position - The numerical sequence in which a chart series is displayed.
In the hierarchy above, Category overrides Position, Legend overrides Category, and Measure
overrides Legend.
When a user drills on a chart that has conditional formatting applied, the following rules apply:
a conditional format based on dimensional attributes is carried to the next chart if it has not
been drilled on
For example, if you had the conditional format Lemonade = Blue" and only drill on years,
then Lemonade = Blue will stay in place.
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Table 18.
Chart Type
Exception
Step Chart
Line Chart
Radar Chart
Pareto Chart
Click the following button at the top of the chart view page:
Make your selections for the value and what the data label should show.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
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General Steps for Adding or Modifying an Oracle BI Pivot Table View on page 125
Using Multiple Page Drop-Down Lists in Oracle BI Pivot Tables on page 128
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new pivot table view, click the Results tab and choose Pivot Table from the views
drop-down list.
You can also add a pivot table view by clicking the Pivot Table button at the compound layout
view or at the Criteria tab.
To edit an existing pivot table view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the
views drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the pivot table view.
The workspace shows the options and settings for the view.
To view the pivot table template and buttons for working with each column individually, select
the option to show header toolbars.
The workspace shows the pivot table template.
To add a column to a pivot table view, click the column in the selection pane.
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Drag and drop the request columns, which appear as elements in the pivot table, to the desired
positions in the pivot table template.
To add a chart view next to the pivot table, select the option Chart Pivoted Results.
For information about the chart view, see Showing Results in Charts Using Oracle BI Chart View
on page 107.
For more information about sorting, see Specifying the Sort Order for Columns in Oracle BI
Requests on page 35.
For totals in the Pages, Section, Row, and Column areas, click the totals button and make a
selection:
To show the total before or after the data items, choose Before or After. For example, if
you add a total on a row containing regions and specify the Before option, the total is
shown before individual districts in the region are listed.
To insert custom text into a total heading, click the totals button and select the Format Labels
option to display the Edit Format dialog box. Enter the custom text into the Caption field as
follows:
The double quote syntax is not limited to a single character. In general you can use a
backslash escaped string inside double quotes. For example:
"1234567890\\abc\\d\"x\"yz!@#$%^&*()-+=_{}[];:'|?/><,.` ~"
is displayed as:
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1234567890\abc\d"x"yz!@#$%^&*()-+=_{}[];:'|?/><,.` ~
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For totals in the Measures area, click the More Options button for the row or column to be totaled,
choose Aggregation Rule, select a value, and make sure the option Report-Based Total is
selected.
NOTE: If the option Report-Based Total is not selected, the Oracle BI Server will calculate
the total based on the entire result set, before applying any filters to the measures.
Depending on the position of this element, the totals for the summary data represented by
the Measures elements display as a column or row. Column and row totals include labels.
When the Totals button is dimmed, no totals will appear.
To work with additional options for a column, measure, or row, click the More Options or
Formatting button and make a selection from the drop-down list.
For more information about the cosmetic formatting you can apply to headings, see Applying
Cosmetic Formatting to Results and Dashboards on page 81.
10 To format labels or values for a column, click the Totals button or the More Options button, and
then select the appropriate format option.
For information about formatting columns, see Applying Formatting in Oracle BI Pivot Tables on
page 129.
11 When you are done, you can save the request with the pivot table view.
Table 19.
Position
Description
Pages
Provides an interactive result set that allows users to select the data they want to
view. The values from the columns that appear in the Pages position are used as
the initial filter criteria. The values appear in a drop-down list for selection. Based
on that selection, a pivot table (composed of the Sections, Columns, Rows, and
Measures defined in the pivot table) appears. For more information, see Using
Multiple Page Drop-Down Lists in Oracle BI Pivot Tables on page 128.
Sections
Provides initial filter criteria. For each value in the Section column, a unique pivot
table appears, composed of the Columns, Rows, and Measures defined in the pivot
table.
Columns
Rows
Shows an element in a row orientation. Like columns, pivot tables can contain
multiple rows.
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Table 19.
Position
Description
Measures
Populates the section of a pivot table that contains summary data. The elements
in the Measures area are summarized based on the elements in the page, section,
row, and column fields. Each value in the Measures elements represents a
summary of data from the intersection of the source rows and columns.
The Measure Labels element, which appears in the Columns area by default,
represents the label position for the Measures columns. It also provides totaling
and ordering capabilities. If there is only one measure, this element can be
excluded.
Excluded
Excludes columns from the pivot table results. Any column that is added as criteria
for the request after the pivot table has been created, is added as excluded.
After displaying a pivot table, if you then exclude a column with the pivot table view
designer, Oracle BI Presentation Services redisplays the pivot table view using the
existing data. If you exclude a column in the request definition for the pivot table
view, Oracle BI requeries the database to update the data.
Drag and drop your target attributes into the Pages area.
Click the More Options button on the second (or any subsequent) attribute in the Pages layout
area.
You can create drop-down lists for other attributes in the Pages area. When the report is saved, the
drop-down lists will be available to users with access to the report.
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To override the default aggregation rule for a measure in an Oracle BI pivot table
1
Click the More Options button for the measure whose default aggregation rule you want to
override.
Select the option Aggregation Rule, and then select the aggregation rule to apply.
The chosen aggregation rule for the measure is indicated by a check mark.
At the pivot table view, click the Table View Properties button near the top of the workspace.
To add green bar styling, click the green bar styling check box.
To change the way the styling is applied, make a selection from the drop-down list.
To change the default green bar color, choose a new background color for the cell format.
For more information about cosmetic formatting, see Applying Cosmetic Formatting to Results and
Dashboards on page 81.
Include and customize the position of column headings together with the values in that section.
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Insert page break options. Specify a column against which to insert page breaks. Every time a
value changes in the column, the new column will appear on a new page. This is useful for datadriven detail reports.
Apply additional formatting to a section. For example, to specify the width and height of the
section.
To specify the appearance of the section, make selections from the Section Properties dialog box
as follows:
Select an Insert Page Break Option from the drop-down list to specify which column to use for
page breaks as follows:
Outermost Column - inserts a page break when the section label in this column changes
Click the check box to display all rows, even if a row is an empty text string and contains
no value.
Clear the check box to hide rows when there are no results to display (default value).
This option might be useful for example, if you want to hide empty address lines.
To format additional properties of the section, make selections from the Additional Formatting
Options sections.
Use a section value or a row value in pivot table calculations but suppress its display in results.
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At the pivot table view, click the More Options button for the section or row and make a selection
from the drop-down list.
To apply cosmetic formatting to section and row headings or values, select the appropriate
option (Format Headings... or Format Values...).
For information about applying cosmetic formatting, see Applying Cosmetic Formatting to
Results and Dashboards on page 81.
To specify that a section value is placed in a new row, choose Place Value in New Row. For
more information, see Using the Place Value in New Row Setting on page 131.
To display a section value once and hide repeated section values, choose Hide Repeated
Values. For more information, see Using the Hide Repeated Values Setting on page 131.
To define a new calculated item, see Building Calculations in Oracle BI Pivot Tables on
page 134.
To duplicate the section or row in the pivot table, choose Duplicate Layer.
To remove a duplicated section or row in the pivot table, choose Remove Duplicate (only
visible after you have used the Duplicate Layer option).
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A running sum is incompatible with the SQL RSUM function (the effect would be a running sum
of the running sum).
All running sums are reset with each new section. A running sum does not reset at a break within
a section or continued across sections.
If a measure does not display in a single column or in a single row, the measure is summed left
to right and then top to bottom. (The lower right cell will contain the grand total.) A running sum
does not reset with each row or column.
In the Measures area, click the More Options button for the row or column to be summed and
choose the following option:
Display as running sum
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results in Pivot Tables
Using Oracle BI Pivot Table View
At the pivot table view, click the More Options button for the item you want to show as a relative
value.
NOTE: The following step is optional. When you duplicate the measure in the pivot table, you
can see both the total for the measure and its relative value. This eliminates the need to add the
column twice on the Criteria tab to see the total and its relative value in the pivot table.
Select the option Show Data As and choose Percent of or Index of, and then choose the
appropriate submenu option.
NOTE: The option Show Data As is available only for items that are stored or calculated
measures.
The options for Percent of and Index of are shown in the following table. For Percent of choices,
the number of decimal places is dependent upon the type of measure.
Percent of or
Index of
Result
Column
Shows the percentage of the column, or index value, that this value
constitutes.
Row
Shows the percentage of the row, or index value, that this value
constitutes.
Section
Shows the percentage of the section, or index value, that this value
constitutes.
Page
Shows the percentage of the page, or index value, that this value
constitutes.
Column Parent
Shows the percentage of the column parent, or index value, that this
value constitutes.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results in Pivot Tables
Using Oracle BI Pivot Table View
Table 20 describes the calculations that you can use in pivot tables.
Table 20.
Calculation
Description
Default
Sum
Calculates the sum obtained by adding up all values in the result set. Use this on
items that have numeric values.
Min
Calculates the minimum value (lowest numeric value) of the rows in the result
set. Use this on items that have numeric values.
Max
Calculates the maximum value (highest numeric value) of the rows in the result
set. Use this on items that have numeric values.
Average
Calculates the average (mean) value of an item in the result set. Use this on
items that have numeric values. Averages on pivot tables are rounded to nearest
whole number.
First
Last
Count
Calculates the number of rows in the result set that have a nonnull value for the
item. The item is typically a column name, in which case the number of rows with
nonnull values for that column are returned.
Count Distinct
Adds distinct processing to the Count function. This means that each distinct
occurrence of the item is counted only once.
Formula
Opens a toolbar that lets you select mathematical operators to include in the
calculation.
None
No calculation is applied.
Server
Complex
Aggregate
The aggregation rule is determined and calculated by the server instead of the
pivot table.
Internally, Oracle BI Presentation Services processes pivot table calculations as SQL SELECT
statements, and performs the indicated functions on the result set. For more information about SQL
functions, see Oracle Business Intelligence Server Administration Guide.
In the Pages, Sections, Rows, or Columns area, click the More Options button for the measure
on which you want a calculation performed.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results in Pivot Tables
Using Oracle BI Pivot Table View
To build a calculation other than a formula, choose from the following options:
To build one calculation, select the function to work with from the Function drop-down list,
and click on one or more items in the Values list to add them to the Function field.
To build multiple calculations for multiple items, type the functions and click on the item
names to add them to the Function field. See Examples of Calculations in Oracle BI Pivot
Tables on page 136 for examples of the kinds of calculations that you can build.
If you are averaging a column with a type of integer, change the formula for the column to
cast it to a double (floating point) type. For example, if the current formula is x, change it to
CAST(x as double).
NOTE: Averages on pivot tables are rounded to nearest whole number.
Operator
Description
Dollar sign, for acting upon the row position of an item in a formula.
In the Function field, build the formula by typing or clicking measure names, and clicking
operators to insert them into the formula. See Examples of Calculations in Oracle BI Pivot
Tables for examples of what you can do.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results in Pivot Tables
Using Oracle BI Pivot Table View
136
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results as Gauges Using
Oracle BI Gauge View
Specifying General Gauge Background Properties in Oracle BI Gauge View on page 140
Specifying Additional Properties for a Gauge in Oracle BI Gauge View on page 141
Setting Advanced Properties for the Dial in a Dial Gauge on page 143
Gauge Types
Table 21 shows the gauges available from the Gauge drop-down list and describes their uses. The
default gauge is a dial gauge.
Table 21.
Gauge Type
Description
Dial
A dial gauge shows data using a dial with one or more indicator needles
that change position to indicate where the data falls within predefined
limits.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results as Gauges Using
Oracle BI Gauge View
Table 21.
Gauge Type
Description
Bar
A bar gauge shows data using a single bar that changes color to indicate
whether the data is within predefined limits.
Bulb
A bulb gauge shows data using a circle that changes color to indicate
whether the data is within predefined limits. An array of bulb gauges is
particularly useful for scorecard-type output.
Gauge Subtypes
Your selection for the gauge type determines the gauge subtypes that are available from the Type
drop-down list. The dial gauge has no subtype. Gauge subtypes include the following:
Bulb gauges: 3-dimensional (3D) and 2-dimensional (2D). The default subtype is 3D.
Gauge Sizes
Gauge sizes include small, medium, large, and custom. The default size is medium.
Table 22.
Description
Allows you to set general properties for the background on which the
gauge appears.
For more information, see Specifying General Gauge Background Properties
in Oracle BI Gauge View on page 140.
Allows you to specify a title, a subtitle, a footer, and a secondary footer for
the gauge.
For more information, see Adding Titles and Footers in Oracle BI Gauge
View on page 140.
Allows you to specify the ranges to represent in the gauge.
For more information, see Adding Gauge Ranges in Oracle BI Gauge View
on page 141.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results as Gauges Using
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Table 22.
Description
Allows you to specify additional gauge properties, including control over
the appearance of elements within the gauge, setting properties for gauge
limits and tick marks, and specifying the interaction to occur when a user
clicks the gauge.
For more information, see Specifying Additional Properties for a Gauge in
Oracle BI Gauge View on page 141.
Allows you to set advanced properties for the dial in a dial gauge, including
how scale labels are displayed, and the arc length and thickness of the
dial.
For more information, see Setting Advanced Properties for the Dial in a Dial
Gauge on page 143.
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new gauge view, click the Results tab and choose Gauge from the views drop-down
list.
To edit an existing gauge view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the views
drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the gauge view.
The workspace shows the options and settings for the view.
Make your selections for the gauge, type, and size from the drop-down lists.
For all gauge types, use the Measures drop-down list to select the measure to gauge.
For dial gauges, use the Marker Type drop-down list select the indicator needle to use, such as
a compass, arrow, or line.
To select a color for the indicator needle, click the Color button and make a selection.
Use the buttons at the top of the gauge view page to specify additional gauge settings.
To remove changes and start from the default gauge view, click the Clear button.
When you are done, you can save the request with the gauge view.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results as Gauges Using
Oracle BI Gauge View
Click the gauge canvas properties button at the top of the gauge view page.
The Gauge Canvas Properties dialog box appears.
To edit the name of the measure, click the formatting button (next to the title field), to
display the Edit text format dialog box, and make your selections.
To show a different title, click Override default and type the title text.
To set a background color for the area on which the gauge appears, click the background color
button and make a selection.
To show the title in a color, click the text color button and make a selection.
To show a border along the edges of the background, click the border color button and make a
selection.
Specify the number of gauges to appear per row, and the space between them.
The space between gauges is measured in pixels.
Click OK.
The gauge view refreshes. The view may resize to accommodate your selections.
Click the gauge titles button at the top of the gauge view page.
The Gauge Titles dialog box appears.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results as Gauges Using
Oracle BI Gauge View
Click the gauge ranges button at the top of the gauge view page.
The Gauge Ranges dialog box appears.
To set the minimum and maximum gauge ranges, click the properties button and make a
selection from the Advanced Options dialog box.
The Advanced Options dialog box enables you to specify either a static value, a variable, a
column name, or a SQL statement.
c
3
To specify the color for the range, click the color button and make a selection.
14 1
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results as Gauges Using
Oracle BI Gauge View
Selections for a background color for the gauge, the color of text within the gauge, and a border
around the gauge.
Choices for scale properties appear on the Scale tab and include the following items:
Choices for the user interaction with the gauge appear on the Interaction tab and include the
following actions:
Navigate. Allows the user to navigate to another saved request or dashboard. For more
information, see To specify the user interaction with an Oracle BI gauge view on page 142.
Click the following button at the top of the gauge view page:
Select the Navigate radio button, and click the Add Navigation Target button.
Target and Caption fields are displayed.
If you want users to navigate to other saved requests or dashboards, click the Browse button to
open the Choose Request/Dashboard dialog box, navigate to the target request or dashboard,
and click OK to select the target.
To allow navigation to multiple saved requests, dashboards or Web sites, click the Add Navigation
Target button, and repeat the previous steps.
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Oracle BI Gauge View
Click OK.
Click the additional gauge properties button at the top of the gauge view page.
The Additional Gauge Properties dialog box appears.
Click OK.
The gauge view refreshes.
Percentage of total
Actual value
The dial arc length is expressed in degrees. For example, specifying 360 results in a dial gauge that
is a complete circle.
The dial thickness is expressed in pixels. As you specify larger values, the gauge becomes thicker,
and the inner perimeter of the dial becomes smaller. Specifying extremely large values relative to
the dial size may cause the gauge to become distorted and is not recommended.
Click the advanced options button at the top of the gauge view.
The Dial Specific Properties dialog box appears.
Make your selection for how the scale labels should appear.
To suppress the display of scale labels, choose None.
To set the dial arc length and dial thickness, click the option to specify them manually and enter
values.
Click OK.
The gauge view refreshes.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Filters Applied to Results
Using Oracle BI Filters View
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new filters view, click the Results tab and choose Filters from the views drop-down
list.
You can also add a filters view by clicking the Filters button at the compound layout view.
To edit an existing filters view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the views
drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the filters view.
When you are done, you can save the request with the filters view.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
144
To add a new column selector view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > Column
Selector from the views drop-down list.
To edit an existing Column Selector view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout
from the views drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the column selector
view.
The workspace shows the options and settings for the view.
Select the Include Selector option for each column that you want a column selector to appear.
Type a label for each selector and select a position for the label.
NOTE: If you do not type a label, users viewing the results will not see a label on the selector.
From the subject area in the selection pane, select the columns you want in the selector.
If you want to remove a specific choice from a column selector, click the Delete button.
To remove all choices, click the Clear Choices link.
When you are done, you can save the request with the column selector view.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new view selector view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > View
Selector from the views drop-down list.
To edit an existing view selector view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from
the views drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the view selector view.
(Optional) Type a caption for the view selector and indicate where the caption should appear
relative to the view selector.
Make your selections for view choices to include in the view selector.
NOTE: The None view shows the selector only.
14 5
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding a Legend to Results Using
Oracle BI Legend View
When you are done, you can save the request with the view selector view.
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new legend view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > Legend from the
views drop-down list.
To edit an existing legend view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the
views drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the legend view.
Make your selections for where to show captions and how many legend items you want per row.
In the first Sample Text text box, type the first condition you want to document, such as Critical.
You can use the common formatting dialog box to set the background color, such as red.
In the first Caption text box, type the meaning of the condition, such as Requires Immediate
Attention.
When you are done, you can save the request with the legend view.
146
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Showing Results in a Funnel Chart
Using Oracle BI Funnel Chart View
Funnel charts are well suited for showing actual compared to targets for data where the target is
known to decrease (or increase) significantly per stage, such as a sales pipeline. You can click on
one of the colored areas to drill down to more detailed information.
In funnel charts, the thresholds indicate a percentage of the target value, and colors provide visual
information for each stage:
All stages for which the actual value falls below the minimum threshold are colored in red.
All stages for which the actual value falls below the maximum threshold are colored in yellow.
All stages for which the actual value is greater than the maximum threshold are colored in green.
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new funnel chart view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > Funnel Chart
from the views drop-down list.
To edit an existing funnel chart view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from
the views drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the funnel chart view.
The workspace shows the options and settings for the view.
Description
Chart Title
Stage
Actual Value
Specifies the actual value for the stage, from the drop-down list.
Target Value
Specifies the target value for the stage, from the drop-down list.
Indicates whether the target value should appear for each stage
or for the final stage only.
Minimum Threshold
Maximum Threshold
Size
14 7
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Narrative Text to Results
Using Oracle BI Narrative View
Description
Interaction
When you are done, you can save the request with the funnel chart view.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
Use HTML formatting buttons to make text bold, italic, or underlined, and insert line breaks.
Apply cosmetic formatting to the fonts used in the narrative view, or import the font formatting
from a previously saved view.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Narrative Text to Results
Using Oracle BI Narrative View
The following table lists and describes the users narrative view entries:
Field
Entry
Explanation
Prefix
Narrative
@2
Row Separator
<br>
(at sign, unless used as a column placeholder in the Narrative text box)
(left bracket)
(right bracket)
(single quote)
(back slash)
NOTE: If you want to include a reserved character, precede it with a backward slash character (\) to
escape it. For example, to include a backward slash character in narrative text, type \\.
14 9
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Narrative Text to Results
Using Oracle BI Narrative View
In the Prefix, Narrative, and PostFix text boxes, you can use the HTML formatting buttons to make
text appear in bold, italic or underlined type.
NOTE: To include a line break, use the Line Break button. Pressing Enter does not result in multiple
lines of text.
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new narrative view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > Narrative from
the views drop-down list.
To edit a narrative view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the views dropdown list, and then click the Edit View button for the narrative view.
The workspace shows the options and settings for the view.
Comments
Specifies the header for the narrative. This text appears at the
beginning of the narrative.
You can use the @{variableName}{<value>}[format] syntax to
include a variable. For example:
Prefix - Region:@{myFavoriteRegion} - Year:@{myFavoriteYear}.
Narrative
Indicates the narrative text that will appear for each row in the results.
Use @n to include the results from the designated column in the
narrative. For example, @1 inserts the results from the first column in
the narrative, and @3 inserts the results of the third column.
You can use the @{variableName}{<value>}[format] syntax to
include a variable. For example:
Narrative - Region@{myFavoriteRegion} - Year:@{myFavoriteYear}.
Row Separator
Specifies a row separator tag. Then, you can enter the desired row
separator in the Row Separator text box.
Postfix
Specifies the footer text that appear at the bottom of the narrative.
You can use the @{variableName}{<value>}[format] syntax to
include a variable. For example:
PostFix - Region@{myFavoriteRegion} - Year:@{myFavoriteYear}.
NOTE: To display the footer information on a separate line from the
actual narrative text, include markup tags in the postfix text box. Make
sure that the narrative ends in a row separator, or that the footer begins
with a row separator.
150
To apply cosmetic formatting to the font used in the narrative view, click the format view button.
For information about applying cosmetic formatting, see Applying Cosmetic Formatting to Results
and Dashboards on page 81.
To import the font formatting from a previously saved view, click the import formatting button
and navigate to the saved view.
When you are done, you can save the request with the narrative view.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new ticker view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > Ticker from the
views drop-down list.
To edit an existing ticker view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the views
drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the ticker view.
The workspace shows the options and settings for the view.
To generate default settings for the most commonly used fields, click the Set Defaults button.
CAUTION: If you click the Set Defaults button after entering values in other fields, your entered
values are cleared.
15 1
Description
Behavior
Direction
Specifies the direction the results move in the ticker (left, right,
down, or up).
Width
Height
Beginning Text
Row Format
Row Separator
152
Description
Column Separator
Ending Text
Make your selections for the advanced options and click OK.
Description
Specifies the number of times that the results will scroll. The
default is an infinite number of times.
You must specify a whole number.
Scroll Amount
Scroll Delay
Background Color
Additional Marquee
Attributes
15 3
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Text to Results Using
Oracle BI Static Text View
When you are done, you can save the request with the ticker view.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new static text view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > Static Text from
the views drop-down list.
To edit an existing static text view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the
views drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the static text view.
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Text to Results Using
Oracle BI Static Text View
ActiveX object
JavaScript or VBScript
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Adding Text to Results Using
Oracle BI Static Text View
Background image
Variables
156
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Alerting Users to No Data Using
Oracle BI No Results View
To apply cosmetic formatting to the font used in the static text view, click the format view button.
For information about applying cosmetic formatting, see Applying Cosmetic Formatting to Results
and Dashboards on page 81.
To import the font formatting from a previously saved view, click the import formatting button
and navigate to the saved view.
When you are done, you can save the request with the static text view.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new no results view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > No Results from
the views drop-down list.
To edit an existing no results view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the
views drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the no results view.
When you are done, you can save the request with the no results view.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
15 7
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new logical SQL view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > Logical SQL
from the views drop-down list.
To edit an existing logical SQL view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from the
views drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the logical SQL view.
To issue SQL directly to the Oracle BI Server, click the Issue SQL button.
The Issue SQL Directly dialog box appears, with instructions to help you issue SQL.
When you are done, you can save the request with the logical SQL view.
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
In Oracle BI Answers, create or modify the request with which you want to work, and then
perform one of the following actions:
To add a new create segment view, click the Results tab and choose Other Views > Create
Segment from the views drop-down list.
To edit an existing create segment view, click the Results tab, choose Compound Layout from
the views drop-down list, and then click the Edit View button for the create segment view.
When you are done, you can save the request with the create segment view.
158
Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Creating Lists of Contacts and
Accounts Using Oracle BI Create Target List View
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
Related Topics
Overview of Oracle BI Answers on page 25
Performing Common Tasks When Working with Oracle BI Views on page 91
About Guided Navigation in Oracle BI on page 228
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Working with Oracle BI Views in Oracle BI Answers Creating Lists of Contacts and
Accounts Using Oracle BI Create Target List View
160
This chapter provides information about using Oracle BI Delivers. It contains the following topics:
Creating and Managing iBots Using the Oracle BI Delivers Start Page on page 164
Specifying Oracle BI Delivers iBot Priority, Data Visibility, and Impersonation on page 166
Viewing, Modifying, Subscribing to and Customizing Oracle BI Delivers iBots on page 184
Configuring Your Oracle BI Delivers Devices, and Delivery Profiles on page 186
16 1
Table 23.
Term
Definition
Alert
Delivery Profile
Your delivery profile specifies which devices to use to deliver content to you,
based on the priority of the content. You can define several delivery profiles to
meet your needs, and switch among them. Oracle BI Delivers uses your active
delivery profile to determine which devices should receive delivered content.
Device
A device is the medium used to deliver content to you. The content of an iBot
can be delivered on a variety of devices, including plain text or HTML email,
mobile phone, pager, and PDA.
iBot
162
You may be automatically subscribed to some iBots, and iBots created by others may be available
for you to subscribe to. You can also create your own iBots if you have the appropriate permissions
and responsibilities. Depending on the level of authority you have, you can selectively share iBots
with others or make iBots available for all users.
You can specify your account information and preferences using the My Account link (available from
Oracle BI Answers, from Oracle BI Delivers, and from Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards). The
Delivery Options section shows the devices and delivery profiles configured for use by Oracle BI
Delivers. Oracle BI Delivers uses your active delivery profile to determine which devices should
receive delivered content. You might have an In the Office delivery profile that delivers content to a
Web browser and office email, and an On the Road profile that delivers content to your pager or PDA,
depending on the priority of the information. You can access the My Account link to switch between
available profiles as needed.
To handle more complex requirements, iBots can trigger other iBots, scripts, Java programs, or
applications. Results can be passed between iBots, and to other applications or services through XML,
HTML, or plain text. For example, an iBot may run a request to identify all current product orders
over a specified dollar amount that cannot be filled from a regional warehouse. The results can be
passed to another iBot that runs a request to locate alternative sources for these products. A final
iBot may be triggered to feed information into a corporate CRM system, and notify the appropriate
account representatives of the alternative sourcing.
When Oracle BI Delivers is enabled, an Alerts section is automatically added to the first page of My
Dashboard if one is not manually placed there. If you want to add an Alerts section to an additional
dashboard page, for more information, see the Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Help system, or the
Using Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards chapter in the Oracle Business Intelligence Answers,
Delivers, and Interactive Dashboards User Guide.
For information about accessing active alerts, see Accessing Oracle BI Alerts on page 189.
Create iBots
Chain iBots
For more information about the Privilege Administration page, see Oracle Business Intelligence
Presentation Services Administration Guide.
16 3
Navigate to Oracle BI and click the More Products link near the top of the screen, then click
Delivers.
NOTE: If you are already in Delivers, you can display the Start page at any time by clicking the
Delivers logo near the top left of the screen.
When viewing saved requests in Oracle BI Answers, click the Create iBot link.
The Oracle BI Delivers Schedule tab appears.
When saving a request in Oracle BI Answers, click the Save and Schedule button.
The Oracle BI Delivers Schedule tab appears.
For more information, see Basics of Working with Requests in Oracle BI Answers on page 25.
NOTE: What you see in Oracle BI Delivers depends on the permissions granted to your user ID, so
you may not see all of the preceding links on your Oracle BI Delivers start page.
The start page has two main areas:
Selection pane. The selection pane is located on the left side of the page. It shows Delivers
content saved in the Presentation Catalog, such as personal and shared iBots.
Workspace. The workspace is located to the right of the selection pane. It initially shows the
iBot links that you can work with to create and manage your iBots.
When you make a selection from the selection pane, such as clicking a saved iBot, your selection
appears in the workspace so you can work with it. When you click an iBot link in the workspace, the
workspace displays tabs for working with iBots. The tabs will not appear for iBots selected from the
Shared iBots folder, unless you are the Web Administrator, or have been granted permissions to
modify the iBot.
164
Using Oracle BI Delivers Creating and Managing iBots Using the Oracle BI Delivers Start
Page
For an overview of Oracle BI Delivers, see Overview of Oracle BI Delivers on page 161.
enter AB to display iBots with names that include the letters AB, aB, Ab, and ab
NOTE: If you navigate to a folder in the selection pane before using the Search field, your search is
restricted to the iBots in that folder and sub-folders. However, if you are displaying the Delivers Start
page, the search spans all iBots acting on your behalf.
NOTE: Searches are case insensitive.
NOTE: If you use a backslash character (\) in an iBot name (for example Na\me), the search string
used to find it must contain an additional backslash (called an escape character). For example, an
iBot called Na\me would require the search string Na\\me, to retrieve details for that iBot. Without
the additional backslash an error message is displayed.
16 5
NOTE: You can also click the folders My iBots or Shared iBots to view the iBots acting on your behalf.
To return to the Oracle BI Delivers start page from anywhere within Oracle BI
Click the setting for which you want to view more detailed information.
The display changes to show you the appropriate information.
166
For an overview of Oracle BI Delivers, see Overview of Oracle BI Delivers on page 161.
To specify the priority of the iBot and how to send the delivery content
1
Select the data visibility from the Data Visibility drop-down list.
If you select the Not personalized option, specify the user ID to act as the Run As user.
If the request does not return any rows, the iBot is not triggered.
If the request returns at least one row, the iBot sends its delivery content and initiates any
subsequent actions.
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You can chain requests together to create complex conditional logic. For example, you might have a
request that determines what the ten best-selling products were last year, and a second request that
determines, for these products, the change in sales this year in each region, and then reports any
products with a negative change.
For an overview of Oracle BI Delivers, see Overview of Oracle BI Delivers on page 161.
Click the Select Condition... button to select the request, and then complete the dialog box that
appears.
Enter the date in the Start Date box (or click the calendar icon to select a date).
Acceptable date format options are:
168
yyyy-mm-dd
(Optional) Select the time zone to determine when the iBot starts.
NOTE: The dates and times you specify are determined by the time zone you select in the Set
Time Zone field. The location (time zone) of the machine where the Oracle Business Intelligence
Scheduler is located is not relevant.
Enter the interval between executions (in minutes), and the time to stop the repetition.
In the Recurrence section, click the Daily radio button, and specify Every 1 day(s).
Click the Once option Run once (or on one day if repeating).
This is the default option.
If the iBot has already run, this option enables you to specify that the iBot will only run once
more on the specified time or day.
Click the Daily option and specify the daily interval, such as every 3 days.
Click the Weekly option and specify the weekly interval, such as every 1 week.
Select the days of the week when the iBot should run, such as Monday through Friday.
Click the Monthly option and specify either the day of the month or the day occurrence, such as
the first Tuesday.
Click the End by option and enter a date, or select a date from the calendar.
By default, no ending date is specified.
16 9
Click the Choose recipients button to open the Select Recipients dialog box and specify the
eligible users and groups.
For more information, see Using the Select Recipients Dialog Box on page 172.
Click the Select button to open the Select Subscribers dialog box and specify the eligible users
and groups.
For more information, see Using the Select Recipients Dialog Box on page 172.
NOTE: When you select the Publish for subscription option, the Allow subscribers to customize
iBot option is enabled.
NOTE: You can only publish iBots that have content that can be shared.
170
To identify the column that contains the desired recipients, make a selection from the Column
Containing Recipients drop-down list.
You can also specify a second column from the request.
To send a subset of the data in the delivery content, click the following option:
Show relevant rows only
For example, if a request runs, and only a subset of rows in the result pertains to a single user,
only those rows are delivered.
NOTE: This option is only enabled if the iBot contains a conditional request.
Click the Select button to open the Select Recipients dialog box and specify the eligible users and
groups.
For more information, see Using the Select Recipients Dialog Box on page 172.
NOTE: When you select the Publish for subscription option, the Allow subscribers to customize
iBot option is enabled.
17 1
Select the users to unsubscribe, click the delete button, and then click OK.
TIP: You can select multiple users by holding down the SHIFT or CTRL keys and selecting
adjacent or nonadjacent users.
To view recipients by groups, or by users and groups, make a selection from the drop-down list.
Click a user or group to select it, and then click the Select Recipients arrow button to move it
into the list of recipients.
You can select multiple recipients by holding down the SHIFT or CTRL keys and selecting adjacent
or nonadjacent recipients.
To remove a recipient, click a user or group to select it, and then click the Remove Recipients
button.
You can use the SHIFT and CTRL keys to select multiple groups or users.
Click OK.
Click one of the following options to display the Save iBot dialog box:
172
Click OK to save the iBot (or copy the iBot) in the selected folder.
Click one of the following options to display the Save iBot dialog box:
If an iBot is available for subscription, the new folder can only be created under /Shared
iBots.
For example, if a user adds a new folder called Sales, the iBot is stored in the new folder /
Shared iBots/Sales
If an iBot is not available for subscription, the new folder can only be created under /My iBots.
For example, if a user adds a new folder called Sales, the iBot is stored in the new folder /
My iBots/Sales
For more information about subscribing to iBots, see Viewing, Modifying, Subscribing to and
Customizing Oracle BI Delivers iBots on page 184.
Click the Create Folder button to create a new folder under the current folder.
Click OK to save the iBot (or copy the iBot) in the new folder.
NOTE: When you click the Save this iBot button (for an existing iBot), the iBot is saved but the Save
iBot dialog box is not displayed. However, the Save iBot dialog box is displayed if the subscription
status is changed, and the iBot has not been saved. For more information, see Viewing, Modifying,
Subscribing to and Customizing Oracle BI Delivers iBots on page 184.
17 3
You can include a short, descriptive headline to include with the content. The headline appears as
the subject when the iBot is delivered. You can add a text message to provide context for an iBot
attachment. You can also personalize a headline or text message by using a repository variable, a
session variable, or a presentation variable.
If the delivery content is blank (no records are returned), you can add an explanation for this
condition (only applies for conditional requests).
This section contains the following topics:
Procedures for Working with the Delivery Content Tab on page 175
For an overview of Oracle BI Delivers, see Overview of Oracle BI Delivers on page 161.
A narrative text description of the conditional request (only displays when a conditional request
exists).
Briefing Books.
Device default
Oracle BI Delivers will use the device default to determine the content format.
174
HTML
Delivery content will be sent inline as HTML.
Attachment (HTML)
Delivery content will be sent as an HTML attachment.
Attachment (PDF)
Delivery content will be sent as a PDF attachment.
Plain Text
Delivery content will be sent in plain text format.
In the Headline text box, type a short, descriptive headline with a session variable, a repository
variable, or a presentation variable using the syntax shown in the following table:
Variable Type
Syntax
Repository
@{Variable_Name}
Session
@{NQ_SESSION.Variable_Name}
Presentation
@{Variable_Name}
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At the Choose Delivery Content dialog box, select the delivery content and click OK.
For more information, see Delivery Content Choices for an iBot on page 174.
Choose a format for the delivery content from the Send content as drop-down list.
For more information, see Delivery Format Options for iBot Delivery Content on page 174.
To add a variable in a text message to provide context for the iBot attachment
1
Type the text into the text box with a session variable, a repository variable, or a presentation
variable using the syntax shown in the following table:
Variable Type
Syntax
Repository
@{Variable_Name}
Session
@{NQ_SESSION.Variable_Name}
Presentation
@{Variable_Name}
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Type the text into the text box with a session variable, a repository variable, or a presentation
variable using the syntax shown in the following table:
Variable Type
Syntax
Repository
@{Variable_Name}
Session
@{NQ_SESSION.Variable_Name}
Presentation
@{Variable_Name}
About User Destinations for the Oracle BI Delivers iBot on page 178
About Specific Devices for the Oracle BI Delivers iBot on page 178
About System Services for the Oracle BI Delivers iBot on page 178
For an overview of Oracle BI Delivers, see Overview of Oracle BI Delivers on page 161.
Click on a check box next to a device or destination to select it for the iBot.
17 7
Interactive Dashboard
Active iBots will appear in a Dashboard Alerts section as well as on the Alerts! page. A link to this
summary appears together with the application navigation links when new iBots are delivered.
After these are cleared on the Alerts page, the alert link is removed.
Pager
Digital Phone
Handheld Device
Other Device
178
17 9
Added actions are shown with a Properties button that you can click to view or modify properties,
and a Delete button that you can click to delete actions.
This section contains the following topics:
For an overview of Oracle BI Delivers, see Overview of Oracle BI Delivers on page 161.
Of specified iBot
Select this option to use the iBot referenced in this dialog.
Of current iBot
Select this option to use the current iBot containing subsequent actions.
If you have filters from originating iBots applied to subsequent iBots, filter values are generated by
the conditional request specified at the Conditional Request tab. The iBot specified at the Advanced
tab will execute once for each row in the conditional report, with filters generated by the values in
that row.
180
Plain Text
Plain Text
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To select the next iBot to run when the current iBot completes
1
Choose the scope of recipients from the Execute for Recipients drop-down list.
For more information, see About iBot Action Properties on page 180.
To specify that filters in the current iBot be applied to the next iBot, click the following option:
Propagate filters from parent
NOTE: This step applies only if the content you select contains filters.
In the Results area, make your selections for whether results are passed to the script, and if
applicable, the format in which to pass results.
Click OK.
182
To pass Name and Value pairs to the Workflow, enter them in the Static Properties section.
To choose a column from a conditional request, select it from the Value Column drop-down list.
Click OK.
To specify a custom Java program to execute when the current iBot completes
1
Click the Add Action button and choose Custom Java Program.
The Custom Java Program Properties dialog box appears.
Type the fully qualified implementation class for the Java program action into the Class Name
field.
For example:
MyCompany.Application.Class1
Type the name of the jar file containing the Java program in the Class Path field.
NOTE: The path is restricted to the name of the jar file. You cannot specify a relative or absolute
path.
NOTE: The Jar file must be in the default user Jar file path, as specified for the Oracle BI
JavaHost. For more information, see the Oracle Business Intelligence Scheduler Guide.
Type the names of other jar files (containing utility classes and libraries that the Java program
requires to run) in the Additional Class Path(s) field.
NOTE: Additional paths are restricted to the names of the jar files. You cannot specify relative
or absolute paths.
NOTE: If more than one additional Jar file is specified, separate each using a semi colon
character (;).
In the Results area, make your selections for whether results are passed to the Java program,
and if applicable, the format in which to pass results.
To add additional parameter values manually, enter the details and click the Add button.
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Viewing and modifying the Oracle BI Delivers iBots Acting on Your Behalf on page 184
For an overview of Oracle BI Delivers, see Overview of Oracle BI Delivers on page 161.
Navigate to Oracle BI Delivers and click the Show iBots Acting on My Behalf link.
A summary list appears in the workspace, displaying details of the iBots you own or are a
recipient of. For more information, see Creating and Managing iBots Using the Oracle BI Delivers
Start Page on page 164.
Navigate to Oracle BI Delivers and click a folder under My iBots or Shared iBots in the selection
pane at the Oracle BI Delivers start page.
A list of iBots appears in the workspace, showing your iBot subscription list for the selected folder.
You can subscribe or unsubscribe to shared iBots using the links displayed in the list for the
Shared iBots folder (for more information, see Subscribing to Oracle BI Delivers iBots on
page 185).
To see more detailed information about the iBot, click the appropriate link in the Overview tab,
or click any other tab.
184
Click the Modify button to display the Create/Edit Filter value dialog.
This dialog enables you to modify values for a column filter as follows:
Click the Add button and select (from the drop-down list) an option to compare with the column
as follows:
Value - Enables you to enter a value.
SQL Expression - Enables you to enter a SQL expression.
Variable (Session, Repository, or Presentation) - Enables you to enter a variable.
Select a value from the Match drop-down list, and enter an appropriate value in the adjacent
field.
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Using Oracle BI Delivers Configuring Your Oracle BI Delivers Devices, and Delivery
Profiles
Click All Choices link to display links for each available column value.
For example, if the column is Region and you click the All Choices link, links for every region
are displayed. You could then select an alternative region.
Click OK.
The Customize iBot page appears, where you can continue to modify filter values for a
column, for the iBot subscription.
Start Oracle BI Answers and locate the report that is being customized.
186
Using Oracle BI Delivers Configuring Your Oracle BI Delivers Devices, and Delivery
Profiles
Click the Add Device link (e.g. the Add Email Device link).
The Device page appears with the Device Name field populated, and options are available in
the Device / Provider list.
Select the appropriate option for the device category from the Device / Provider drop-down list.
To change information for the device, click the Edit link to go back to the Device page.
If you decide you do not want the device, click the Delete link.
This removes the device from the Devices area.
h
4
Click the tab for the device category in which you want to set a default device (e.g. Email,
Phone).
All devices for the selected device category are displayed.
Click the Radio button next to the device that you want to select as the default.
If you select a default device here (e.g. Email1), and select the Email check box in the iBot
Destinations page, the default device will override other Email devices in your active delivery
profile. For more information, see Selecting Destinations for an Oracle BI Delivers iBot on
page 177.
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To change information for the delivery profile, click the Edit link to go back to the Delivery Profile
page.
If you decide you do not want the delivery profile, click the Delete link.
This removes the delivery profile from the Delivery Profiles area.
f
6
To make a delivery profile the active profile, click the radio button next to the profile.
The radio button next to the profile is filled in to indicate that it is the active delivery profile.
188
At the Delivery Profile page, enter the name of the profile in the Name field.
For each device you want to use in the profile, select the priority of the content to be delivered.
NOTE: Do not set the priority for devices that you do not want to use. Devices that do not have
a priority selected are not used by the profile.
You can select any or all priorities by clicking the appropriate check boxes.
Click Finished to save this profile and return to the My Accounts page.
The delivery profile appears in the Delivery Profiles list.
Click the Alerts! link from Oracle BI Answers, Oracle BI Delivers, or Oracle BI Interactive
Dashboards.
The Oracle BI Alerts page opens, in a new window, showing the headline, delivery date and time,
and number of occurrences for each active alert.
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Click the Alerts! link from Oracle BI Answers, Oracle BI Delivers, or Oracle BI Interactive
Dashboards.
The Oracle BI Alerts page opens, in a new window, showing the headline, delivery date and time,
and number of occurrences for each active alert. The RSS button appears at the bottom of the
page.
Right-mouse click the XML button and copy the link information.
Open an RSS reader and manually add the RSS URL to your alerts page. For more information
about creating the RSS source for your alerts, see the RSS reader product documentation.
190
An Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard is a page in an Analytics application that is used to display the
results of Oracle BI requests and other kinds of content. Based on your permissions, you can view
preconfigured dashboards, and create or modify dashboards.
This chapter describes the procedures for creating and managing the content on dashboards. It
contains the following topics:
Creating and Assigning Personal and Shared Saved Selections for an Oracle BI Interactive
Dashboard Page on page 217
19 1
Many of the features in Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards are self-explanatory, and definitions and
how-to information appear on each page. When more information is available than will fit on the
page, a Help button appears near the upper right corner. Click the button to see more detailed
information.
Dashboard creation is reserved for users with administrative responsibilities. Permission to modify
dashboards (personal and shared) is granted to a broader range of users, as determined by an Oracle
BI administrator. Users with the appropriate permissions and responsibilities can modify a
dashboard.
Table 24 provides definitions for common terms in Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards.
Table 24.
Term
Definition
Columns
Dashboard
Objects
Dashboard objects are items that are used only in a dashboard. Examples of
dashboard objects are sections to hold content, navigation links, and
embedded content appearing within a frame in a dashboard.
Folders
Pages
Pages contain the columns and sections that hold the content of a dashboard.
Every dashboard has at least one page. In Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards,
pages are identified by tabs across the top of the dashboard. Multiple pages are
used to organize content. For example, you might have one page to store
results from Oracle BI Answers that you refer to every day, another that
contains links to the Web sites of your suppliers, and one that links to your
corporate intranet.
Results
Results, also called reports, are the output returned from the Oracle BI Server
that matches the request criteria specified using Oracle BI Answers. The default
format for viewing results in a dashboard is to show them in a table. (Your
Oracle BI Presentation Services administrator may have configured a different
default results view for your organization.) Results can also be shown in other
formats, such as charts. You can examine and analyze results, save or print
them, or download them to a spreadsheet.
Sections
Sections appear in columns in the dashboard layout. They hold the content
dragged and dropped from the selection pane, and are used to organize content
within a column.
192
Table 24.
Term
Definition
Skins
Skins control the way the Oracle BI Presentation Services interface appears,
such as background colors, corporate logos, and the style sheets to use. Skins
can be automatically assigned to users when they log on. Oracle BI
administrators can customize the default Oracle BI skin and create new skins.
For information about skins used in Oracle BI, see Oracle Business Intelligence
Presentation Services Administration Guide.
Styles
Styles control how dashboards and results are formatted for display, such as
the color of text and links, the font and size of text, the borders in tables, the
colors and attributes of charts, and so on. Styles are organized into folders that
contain Cascading Style Sheets (files with a .css extension), images, and chart
templates. Oracle BI administrators can customize some style sheets and
create new style sheets. Users can override some elements in style sheets,
such as table borders and text size, when formatting results in Oracle BI
Answers.
For information about styles used in Oracle BI, see Oracle Business Intelligence
Presentation Services Administration Guide.
Presentation
Catalog
For information about administering permissions for dashboards, see Oracle Business Intelligence
Presentation Services Administration Guide. For information about default permissions and
responsibilities for users of Oracle BI applications, see Oracle Business Intelligence Infrastructure
Installation and Configuration Guide.
NOTE: When you use an Oracle Siebel operational application, dashboard integration is done using
Oracles Siebel applications. For information, see Oracle Business Intelligence Infrastructure
Installation and Configuration Guide.
Related Topics
Navigating in Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards on page 194
Creating a New Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on page 195
Adding a New Page to an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on page 196
Adding Content to an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on page 196
Changing the Properties of an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on page 214
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Creating and Assigning Personal and Shared Saved Selections for an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard
Page on page 217
Working with Oracle BI Briefing Books on page 224
About Guided Navigation in Oracle BI on page 228
To view a dashboard
1
Navigate to a dashboard.
Navigate to a dashboard.
Use the keyboard shortcuts shown in Table 25 to navigate within the dashboard.
Table 25.
Keyboard Shortcut
Result
CTRL + SHIFT + F2
Navigates to the first dashboard listed on the page. This is usually your
personal dashboard, named My Dashboard.
CTRL + SHIFT + F3
194
Table 25.
Keyboard Shortcut
Result
CTRL + SHIFT + I
CTRL + SHIFT + U
CTRL + SHIFT + F8
CTRL + SHIFT + F7
At the Create Dashboard page, enter a location and name for the dashboard, and the name of
the user or group that can modify the dashboard.
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Edit Dashboard
At the top of the page, click the name of a dashboard to which you want to add a new page.
The dashboard appears.
Click the Add Dashboard Page button near the top of the Dashboard Editor:
Working with Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Pages and Layout Using the Dashboard Editor on
page 197
196
Adding and Displaying Content in an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page Using the Dashboard
Editor on page 200
Renaming and Deleting Objects on an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page Using the Dashboard
Editor on page 212
Modifying Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Properties Using the Dashboard Editor on page 213
At the top of the page, click the name of a dashboard you want to edit.
The dashboard appears.
Related Topics
Creating a New Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on page 195
Adding a New Page to an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on page 196
Navigating in Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards on page 194
Creating and Assigning Personal and Shared Saved Selections for an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard
Page on page 217
Making a Section Appear Horizontally in an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 199
NOTE: If iBots are enabled within Oracle BI Delivers, an Alerts section will be added to the first page
of My Dashboard if one is not manually placed there.
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From the Page drop-down list next to the name of the dashboard, select the page you want to
edit.
NOTE: This action saves any changes you made to the page you were working with.
Click the Add Column button near the top of the Dashboard Editor:
To specify the width in pixels, type the number of pixels, for example, 200.
To specify the width as a percentage of the dashboard page, use the percent (%) sign, for
example, 20%.
Click OK.
To break a column
198
From the selection pane, drag and drop a Section object from the Dashboard Objects area into
the column.
The column is highlighted when you are at an appropriate location in the column to drop the
section.
From the selection pane, drag and drop a Section object from the Dashboard Objects area into
a column.
The column is highlighted when you are at an appropriate location in the column to drop the
section.
A default name appears for the section.
Click the Properties button for the section and choose Horizontal Alignment.
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Making Content Appear Conditionally in an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 200
Adding a Guided Navigation Link to an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 201
Adding a Briefing Book Navigation Link to an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 201
Adding a Text Link or an Image Link to an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 202
Adding an RSS Feed Option to a Dashboard Pages Catalog Folder on page 209
Adding Content Saved in the Presentation Catalog to an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page on
page 209
Adding an Oracle BI Publisher Report to an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 210
Controlling How Results Display When a User Drills on an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on
page 211
Editing the Properties of Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Prompts and Reports on page 211
200
Click the Properties button for the section that contains the content and choose Guided
Navigation.
The Guided Navigation Properties dialog box appears.
Specify your choices, browse to select the request from the Presentation Catalog, and click OK.
From the selection pane, drag and drop a Guided Navigation Link object into a section in the
dashboard page.
To make the link conditional, specify your choices in the Conditional Link Properties area.
To make the link static, specify your choices in the Guided Navigation Properties area.
Click OK.
From the selection pane, drag and drop a Briefing Book Navigation Link object into a section in
the dashboard page.
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From the selection pane, drag and drop a Link or Image object onto a section in the dashboard
page.
For a text link, type the text into the Caption field.
For an image link, type the location and name of the image into the Image field.
Specify the location as a URL. These are examples:
http://imageserver/MyImage.gif
/DashboardFiles/image.gif
If the image is not on the local server, the URL must include http://. If the image is for use
in a shared environment, it must be located on a network drive accessible to all users.
If you want a caption for the image, type a caption for the image in the Caption field, and
use the Layout drop-down list to choose where the caption should appear relative to the
image.
Specify what should happen when the user clicks the text or image:
To specify that a request or dashboard should appear when the user clicks the link or image,
specify the destination as Request or Dashboard, and click the Browse button to select the
request or dashboard.
To specify that another action should occur, such as opening a Web site, document, or
program, specify the destination as a URL and type the full path into the field that follows
the Destination options.
A link is defined as any URL (Uniform Resource Locator) that your browser can interpret.
URLs can point to Web sites, documents, images, FTP sites, newsgroups, and so on.
Depending on your browser, the following are examples of valid URLs:
http://home.netscape.com/index.html
ftp://ftp.microsoft.com
202
news:news.announce.newusers
See Table 26 on page 204 for more information about the kinds of internal or external content
to which you can link.
NOTE: Oracle BI administrators should create a virtual directory on the Presentation server
for shared documents called \DashboardFiles that maps to a shared network directory of the
same name. This allows users with the appropriate permissions to publish files to this folder,
and reference these files by their relative URL names rather than by their fully qualified
network share names, for example, \DashboardFiles\AnnualReport.doc instead of
\\SharedServer\CommonShare\DashboardFiles\AnnualReport.doc.
In the Target area, choose whether the destination should appear in the user's existing
browser window or in a new window.
TIP: For every action except sending mail and executing a program, you can control how
the link should appear. Choose the current window when you want the action to occur in the
display pane of the dashboard. This leaves the dashboard active but in the background.
Choose a new window when you want the action to take place in a new browser window. This
opens another instance of your browser.
NOTE: To add text or an image only, without any links, leave the field that follows the Destination
options blank.
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Click OK.
Table 26.
Link Options for Adding a Text Link or Image Using the Dashboard Editor
Link Option
Comments
Web site or
document
You need to locate the URL, or address, for the site or document. You can
copy the destination address from your browser's address or location box,
and then paste it.
For a Web site, you can omit the http:// portion of the address if the URL
resides on your Web server, such as your intranet site.
If the URL resides on your organization's Web server, you can enter the
relative address of the file. For example:
\DashboardFiles\Logo.gif
Local or shared
document
Send email to a
specified user
204
Table 26.
Link Options for Adding a Text Link or Image Using the Dashboard Editor
Link Option
Comments
Execute a program
Refresh your
browser using
JavaScript
From the selection pane, drag and drop an Embedded Content object onto a section in the
dashboard page.
20 5
In the URL box, type the location and name of the content to embed.
These are examples:
http://www.oracle.com
/dashboardfiles/piechart.xls
NOTE: The URL that you specify should begin with http:// unless you plan to use an item that is
saved on your Web server. If you use a network path to indicate the location of the item, make
sure you use the exact path. Items that are embedded on a shared dashboard must be located
on a network drive accessible to all users.
If you want to change the default size of the window, type new values into the Width and Height
boxes. When entering values, note the following:
The default size of the embedded content area on the dashboard is 600 by 440 pixels and
the default display area within the embedded content area is 300 by 150 pixels. The
dimensions that you specify for the content area will apply even if the content does not fill
the area. For example, if you embed an image and indicate a width of 100 and a height of
100, but the image only has a width of 50 and a height of 50, the dashboard designates an
area with the dimensions you specified (100 by 100). Items that you place in the content
area are not stretched or reduced to fit the area.
If you do not specify a value, the system uses the default settings (300 by 150 pixels). If you
have only specified one value, the system will use the default value for the non-specified
value.
You can specify the value in either pixels (px) or percent (%). Since browsers cannot fully
interpret percent values, only the width percentage is rendered. If you specify the height in
percentage, the system will substitute 150 pixels for the height value.
If you do not specify either pixels or percent, the system interprets the value in pixels.
You can enter spaces within the value. For example, you can type either 130px or 130 px.
If you do not want the window to have scroll bars, click the following option:
Hide Scroll Bars
Click OK.
206
If you want to add embedded content, which is content that appears in a window within the browser,
choose the Embedded Content object in the Dashboard Editor instead. Then, using the Embedded
Content feature, specify the name and location of the target, and Oracle BI Presentation Services
will wrap the required HTML around the target for you.
From the selection pane, drag and drop an HTML object onto a section in the dashboard page.
Click OK.
Table 27.
Usage Notes and Examples for HTML Elements in an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard
HTML Element
Text
Any HTML tags may be used to control the format of the text. The following
HTML tags are examples of some of the formatting you can apply.
Active-X object
The Active-X object must be self contained and supported by your browser.
Paste or type the object into the HTML text window, making sure to include
the beginning and ending tags <object...> and </object>.
20 7
Table 27.
Usage Notes and Examples for HTML Elements in an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard
HTML Element
JavaScript and
VBScript
The script must be self contained and supported by your browser. Paste or
type the script into the HTML text window, making sure to include the
beginning and ending tags <script> and </script>.
Specify the script language in the opening <SCRIPT> tag, either <SCRIPT
LANGUAGE="javascript"> or <SCRIPT LANGUAGE="vbscript">.
Audio
Make sure you know where the audio clip is located. If the audio clip is for use
in a shared environment, it must be located on a network drive accessible to
all users. Use the HTML tag <EMBED> to add audio in your dashboard. The
following HTML is an example:
<EMBED SRC="audio" AUTOSTART="true" LOOP="true" HIDDEN="true"></
EMBED>
where "audio" is the location and name of the audio clip.
NOTE: You may need to adjust the HTML for your browser.
The following HTML tags are examples of the <EMBED> tag.
To add an audio clip located on your hard drive, you could specify the
following HTML:
<EMBED SRC="c:\mycomputer\MIDIfiles\wakeup.mid"
AUTOSTART="true" LOOP="true" HIDDEN="true"></EMBED>
To add the same audio clip from a shared location on your Web server, you
could specify the following HTML:
<EMBED SRC="/DashboardFiles/wakeup.mid" AUTOSTART="true"
LOOP="true" HIDDEN="true"></EMBED>
From the selection pane, drag and drop a Folder object onto a section in the dashboard page.
208
In the Dashboard Editor, click the Properties button for the folder to which you want to add an
RSS feed option.
The Folder Properties page appears.
Select the Show RSS Link check box and click OK.
From the selection pane, in the Saved Content area, navigate to the folder or dashboard that
contains the content you want to add to the dashboard.
Locate the content that you want to add, and drag and drop it into a section in the dashboard
page.
This adds a shortcut to the content as saved in the Presentation Catalog. If the content changes,
the change will be reflected on the dashboard page.
For information about editing the properties of dashboard and reports, see Editing the Properties
of Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Prompts and Reports on page 211.
20 9
In the dashboard page, click the Page Options button, and click Edit Dashboard...
The Dashboard Editor screen appears.
From the selection pane, drag and drop the BI Publisher Report object from the Dashboard
Objects area into a section on the dashboard page.
Click the Browse button and browse for and select the Oracle BI Publisher report. If a report has
been run, the Pick BI Publisher Report dialog box will display the report as well as the reports
saved history. You can choose any historical instance of the Oracle BI Publisher report. Click OK.
NOTE: You can also add an Oracle BI Publisher report from a dashboard page. From the selection
pane, drag and drop the BI Publisher Report object from the Dashboards folder in the Saved
Content area.
Embedded Content
This option displays the Oracle BI Publisher report directly in the dashboard. This option is
selected by default for reports.
For more information about embedded content, see Adding Embedded Content to an Oracle
BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 205.
Link
The Oracle BI Publisher report is displayed as a link in the dashboard. When you click on the
link, the report is displayed in a new browser window.
If you selected Embedded Content, you can specify the width and height dimensions for the
content. The default height is 550px; however, you should adjust the height setting for the best
display results. Note the following considerations:
If you do not specify a value, the system uses the default settings. If you have only specified
one value, the system will use the default value for the non-specified value.
You can specify the value in either pixels (px) or percent (%). Since browsers cannot fully
interpret percent values, only the width percentage is rendered. If you specify the height in
percentage, the system will substitute 550 pixels for the height value.
210
If you do not specify either pixels or percent, the system interprets the value in pixels.
You can enter spaces within the value. For example, you can type either 500px or 500 px.
Select the View Latest Version if the report you have chosen is scheduled and you want the most
recently generated version of the report to appear in the dashboard.
Click OK.
Show the new results directly in the dashboard, replacing the original report. This is the default
behavior. The area occupied by the original report resizes automatically to hold the new results.
This is controlled by the Drill in Place option. This option is set at the section level, which means that
it applies to all drillable reports within the section. The user can click the browser's Back button to
return to the original report or the dashboard.
Click the Properties button for the section and make your selection for the Drill in Place option:
To show the new results directly in the dashboard, click Drill in Place to select it. A check
mark appears next to this option when it is selected. This is the default behavior.
To replace the dashboard with the new results, click Drill in Place to remove the check mark.
Click the Properties button for the dashboard prompt and click Modify.
The Dashboard Prompt page appears.
21 1
Embed in section
This option executes the request automatically and displays the results directly in the
dashboard, rather than displaying a link that users must click to execute the request and see
the results. This option is selected by default for reports.
For more information about embedded content, see Adding Embedded Content to an Oracle
BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 205.
Show View
This option shows the available views of the report constructed in Oracle BI Answers. You can
select the view you want to see.
Links
This option opens the Report Links dialog box, where you can select the links that you want
to appear with the report on the dashboard page.
Modify
This option displays the Criteria tab in Oracle BI Answers, where you can modify the request
that generates the report.
To rename an object
1
In the Dashboard Editor, click the Rename button for the object.
The Rename dialog box appears.
212
In the Dashboard Editor, click the Delete button for the object.
NOTE: When you delete a column, other columns on the page may resize automatically to
maintain column alignment.
Click the Dashboard Properties button near the top of the Dashboard Editor:
When you are done, click the Finished button to return to the Dashboard Editor.
21 3
Click the PDF and Print Control Properties button near the top of the workspace:
To add a header or footer, select the appropriate option and click the Edit button.
Use the options in the dialog box to construct the header or footer.
Headers and footers may each contain up to three lines.
To apply cosmetic formatting to a header or footer element, click the cosmetic formatting button.
The common formatting dialog box appears. For more information, see Applying Cosmetic
Formatting to Results and Dashboards on page 81.
Accessing the Dashboard Properties Page for an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard on page 215
Renaming, Deleting, Reordering, and Hiding an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 215
NOTE: Dashboard modification is reserved for users with the appropriate permissions and
responsibilities.
214
At the top of the page, click the name of a dashboard whose properties you want to change.
The dashboard appears.
Click the Dashboard Properties button near the top of the Dashboard Editor:
In the General Properties area at the Dashboard Properties page, select the style to use from the
Style drop-down list.
Type a description for the dashboard into the Description box at the Dashboard Properties page.
21 5
When you rename a dashboard, you can preserve users references to the dashboard that use the
previous name. This creates a shortcut with the old name that points to the renamed dashboard in
the Presentation Catalog.
If you are working with a dashboard page, you can hide it from users until your changes are
complete.
CAUTION: The actions described in the following procedures will not be undone by clicking Cancel.
Click the Rename button at the Dashboard Properties page to open the Rename Item page, and
follow the instructions given there.
Click the Delete button at the Dashboard Properties page, and confirm the delete when
prompted.
Click the Security button at the Dashboard Properties page to open the Change Item Permissions
page, and follow the instructions given there.
NOTE: The Security button appears for shared dashboards only, and only if your user ID is
authorized to access the security features.
To move a dashboard page up in the list, click the Move Up button at the Dashboard Properties
page.
On the dashboard, this moves the tab for the page to the left.
To move a page down in the list, click the Move Down button at the Dashboard Properties page.
On the dashboard page, this moves the tab for the page to the right.
Click the Hidden option for the page at the Dashboard Properties page.
The page remains visible to any users currently viewing it.
Related Topic
Applying Cosmetic Formatting to Results and Dashboards on page 81
216
Using Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards Creating and Assigning Personal and Shared
Saved Selections for an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page
Save various combinations of choices for filters and prompts as view selections, for their personal
use or use by others.
Specify which saved selection is the default view, for their personal use or use by others.
21 7
Using Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards Creating and Assigning Personal and Shared
Saved Selections for an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page
Click the Page Options button on the dashboard page and choose Edit Dashboard.
The Dashboard Editor appears. For more information, see Adding Content to an Oracle BI
Interactive Dashboard on page 196.
Click the Page Options button on the dashboard page and perform one of the following actions:
To save the selection for your personal use, choose Save Current Selections > For Me.
To save the selection for use by others, choose Save Current Selections > For Others.
Type a descriptive name for the selection or use the default name.
(Optional) To assign this selection as your default selection, select the default option.
(Optional) If you have the requisite permissions to a shared Saved Selection, you can also specify
access now by clicking the Set Permissions button.
218
Using Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards Creating and Assigning Personal and Shared
Saved Selections for an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page
Click the Page Options button on the dashboard page and choose Apply Saved Selections.
Your personal Saved Selections, if any, are shown at the beginning of the list. Shared Saved
Selections are listed next. Your current default selection is shown in bold type.
Click the Page Options button on the dashboard page and choose Save Current Selections > Edit
Saved Selections and Defaults.
Click the radio button next to any Saved Selection to assign it as your default selection.
The default selection is shown in bold type.
Click the Page Options button on the dashboard page and choose Save Current Selections > Edit
Saved Selections and Defaults.
Click the option at the top of the list to use the unmodified dashboard.
Click the Page Options button on the dashboard page and choose Save Current Selections > Edit
Saved Selections and Defaults.
Locate the selection you want to rename or delete and click the appropriate button.
Click the Page Options button on the dashboard page and choose Save Current Selections > Edit
Saved Selections and Defaults.
In the Shared Selections area, locate the selection you want to assign as the default Saved
Selection for others and click the security button.
Move a group to the Groups with Permission area to share it with that group.
Check the box next to a group to make this Saved Selection the default selection.
21 9
To access another users account, select a users name from the User drop-down list and click OK.
NOTE: Based on the system settings, a text box might appear in the Act As dialog box. Generally,
this text box appears if a long list of users is returned. In this text box you must type the ID of
the user that you want to act as.
The users default dashboard appears. From this dashboard you can view or modify content,
depending upon the access type that you were granted by the administrator.
To return to your account, access the Act As dialog box and click Stop.
220
If your organization uses Oracle BI Publisher, you can run, view, and interact with an Oracle BI
Publisher report in a dashboard page. When included on a dashboard page, the Oracle BI Publisher
toolbar offers the option to select a layout template, change the Oracle BI Publisher reports output
format, export the Oracle BI Publisher report, send the Oracle BI Publisher report to an available
destination (for example, printer, fax, email, or FTP), schedule the Oracle BI Publisher report, and
analyze the data.
NOTE: A dashboard page can only contain one Oracle BI Publisher report. Also, Oracle BI Publisher
reports cannot be created or modified in Oracle BI Answers, used in Oracle BI Delivers, or saved in
Oracle BI Briefing Books. The Add to Briefing Books and Printer Friendly buttons are disabled for a
dashboard page that displays an Oracle BI Publisher report.
Within Oracle BI Publisher, you can also view and schedule reports, as well as launch BI Publisher
Analyzer for Excel, develop report queries and data models, translate reports, and perform Oracle BI
Publisher-related administrative tasks.
Use Oracle BI Publisher to create and save an Oracle BI Publisher report to the report repository. To
add an Oracle BI Publisher report to a dashboard, you must browse to the repository and select the
Oracle BI Publisher report.
For more information about creating or scheduling an Oracle BI Publisher report, see the Oracle
Business Intelligence Publisher User Guide
This section contains the following topics:
Using Dashboard Prompts with Parameterized Oracle BI Publisher Reports on page 223
NOTE: For information about adding an Oracle BI Publisher report to a dashboard page, see Adding
and Displaying Content in an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page Using the Dashboard Editor on
page 200.
From the Oracle BI screen, click More Products and select BI Publisher.
The Oracle BI Publisher application appears in a new browser window.
22 1
When a report that is not scheduled or has no previous history is included on the dashboard, the
report will be executed and generated when you access the dashboard page. You can use the
dashboard prompts to re-generate the report and display updated data.
When adding a report that is scheduled or has historical runs to a dashboard, you may specify either
a specific historical run of the report or the latest version of the report. Since this report has been
run via the scheduler, you cannot use the dashboard prompts to regenerate the report from the
dashboard.
NOTE: For information about adding an Oracle BI Publisher report to a dashboard page, see Adding
and Displaying Content in an Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page Using the Dashboard Editor on
page 200.
Access the dashboard containing the Oracle BI Publisher report that you want to view. For more
information about the various functions, see the Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher User
Guide.
The toolbar functions are described in the following table:
222
Function
Description
Template
Output Type
View
Export
When you click this button, you are prompted to save the
Oracle BI Publisher report or to open the appropriate
application for the output type.
Send
Function
Description
Schedule
Analyzer
Create a new dashboard prompt that is appropriate for the parameter in the Oracle BI Publisher
report that you added to the dashboard. Before creating dashboard prompts for reports, note the
following requirements:
An Oracle BI Publisher report that receives its data from an Answers request must have the
report columns that you want to filter on set to Is Prompted in the Answers request. This
type of report supports the full range of dashboard prompt expressions, but the Oracle BI
report cannot contain parameters.
An Oracle BI Publisher report may receive its data from the Oracle BI Server or some other
data source such as an Oracle database. This type of report can contain parameters with
default values. To properly set up the dashboard prompts, you must define the Presentation
variable for each prompt, and the name of the presentation variable must match the report
parameter name. Because the dashboard passes the prompts value to the reports SQL
query, the dashboard prompts operator must be set to is equal to/is in.
For more information on creating dashboard prompts, see Creating a Dashboard Prompt for
Filtering Oracle BI Requests on page 60. For more information on creating Oracle BI Publisher
reports, see the Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher User Guide.
NOTE: Dashboard modification is reserved for users with the appropriate permissions and
responsibilities.
In Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards, navigate to the dashboard that contains the parameterized
Oracle BI Publisher report and click the Dashboard Editor link.
The Dashboard Editor appears.
From the selection pane, in the Saved Content area, navigate to the folder that contains the
dashboard prompt you want to add.
22 3
Drag and drop the dashboard prompt into the section in the dashboard page that contains the
Oracle BI Publisher report.
Navigate to a dashboard in Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards and then perform one of the
following actions:
Click the Add to Briefing Book button, located near the bottom of the dashboard page.
Click the Add to Briefing Book link that appears with an individual request on the dashboard.
224
Type a name and a description for the briefing book, and then save the briefing book.
The briefing book appears in the Current Briefing Books list at the Save Briefing Book Content
page.
To add additional briefing books, click the Add to Briefing Book link or button, and then create
them using the preceding steps.
Navigate to Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards and then perform one of the following actions:
To add the contents of a dashboard page to a briefing book, navigate to the dashboard and
click the Add to Briefing Book button:
To add the results of an individual request to a briefing book, locate the request on the
dashboard and click the following link:
Add to Briefing Book
NOTE: This link appears only if the request was added to the dashboard with the option to
show the link Add to Briefing Book.
Choose the briefing book from the Current Briefing Books drop-down list.
Snapshot. This adds the content in its current state. Snapshot content preserves the
original data and is not updated when the briefing book is rerun. Snapshot content will
not be updated using Oracle BI Delivers.
Updatable. The content is refreshed whenever the briefing book is downloaded, or when
it is specified as the delivery content for an iBot in Oracle BI Delivers.
For Follow Briefing Book Navigation Links, choose one of the following options:
22 5
If you specified Yes for Briefing Book Navigation Links, choose the number of links to follow in
the briefing book.
The default value for the maximum number of links to follow is 5.
NOTE: A briefing book navigation link is a special type of link that can be added to a
dashboard using the Dashboard Editor. When a briefing book navigation link is found in
content included in a briefing book, the destination content for that link is also included in
the briefing book. For more information, see Adding a Briefing Book Navigation Link to an
Oracle BI Interactive Dashboard Page on page 201.
Navigate to the briefing book in the selection pane in Oracle BI Answers, and then click it.
The right pane displays the contents of the briefing book.
To change the content type, navigation link properties, or the description, click the Properties
button.
The Page Properties dialog box appears.
Make any desired changes for the content type, briefing book navigation links, and the
description, and then click OK.
To download the briefing book, click the Get Now button and specify the location in which to save
it.
Downloaded briefing books are saved with an .ssb file extension. You can then email or share the
briefing book.
NOTE: The Oracle Business Intelligence Briefing Book Reader application is required to view a
downloaded briefing book. For more information, see Viewing an Oracle BI Briefing Book on
page 227.
226
To generate a PDF of the briefing book, click the Print Now button.
The system generates a PDF file, which appears in the right pane. From this pane you can click
the icon to print the briefing book.
NOTE: The Adobe Reader application is required to view or print a briefing book PDF.
When you are done, click the Finished button to save any properties you changed.
Navigate to Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards and click the Edit Dashboard link.
The Dashboard Editor page appears.
From the Dashboard Objects list, drag and drop a folder object into a section.
Browse to locate the folder labeled My Folder, click the folder _briefingbook, and then click OK
to return to the Folder Properties dialog box.
At the Delivery Content tab, click the Select Content button and navigate to the briefing book to
which you want content delivered.
When the iBot runs, the updatable content in the briefing book is delivered.
22 7
Guided navigation using static links. When specified for a request, the results on the
dashboard always include a link to another request, a dashboard, or URL. For example, a report
that shows customer satisfaction gap trends can always appear with a link to a report that shows
customer satisfaction by product line.
Guided navigation using conditional links. When specified for a request, a link to another
request, dashboard, or URL appears only if the results meet certain criteria. For example, if the
number of open critical service requests exceeds a certain threshold, the result set can include
a link to a report that shows customer satisfaction by employee.
Guided navigation using conditional sections. Entire dashboard sections can appear based
upon the results returned by Oracle BI Answers for a particular request. For example, if the
results show that sales are down by 15 percent or greater in the past week, a dashboard section
that contains links to related reports and tools can appear.
The display of static links does not generally affect dashboard rendering time. The display of
numerous conditional links or sections can affect dashboard rendering time.
For information about the Dashboard Editor, see Adding Content to an Oracle BI Interactive
Dashboard on page 196.
228
This chapter provides information about managing content in the Oracle BI Presentation Catalog. It
contains the following topic:
Managing Folders and Content in the Oracle BI Presentation Catalog on page 229
Editing Names and Descriptions of Objects in the Oracle BI Presentation Catalog on page 232
Copying or Moving Folders or Items in the Oracle BI Presentation Catalog on page 233
Working with the Properties of an Item or a Folder in the Oracle BI Presentation Catalog on
page 230
22 9
To locate folders
Click the My Folders link to work with your personal folders and their contents.
or
Click the Shared Folders link to work with the shared folders and items that you have permission
to access.
Click the Create New Folder link and follow the instructions on the page.
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Manage Catalog button on the Catalog tab in the selection pane.
NOTE: The Manage Catalog button is available to the Administrator user ID and to users with
appropriate permissions.
The Manage Catalog page appears.
If you have the appropriate authority, you can take ownership of the item or folder by clicking
the Take Ownership of this item link or the Take Ownership of this item and all subitems link in
the Ownership area.
230
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Manage Catalog button on the Catalog tab in the selection pane.
NOTE: The Manage Catalog button is available to the Administrator user ID and to users with
appropriate permissions.
The Manage Catalog page appears.
Make your changes at the Change Item Permissions page and click the Finished button.
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Manage Catalog button on the Catalog tab in the selection pane.
NOTE: The Manage Catalog button is available to the Administrator user ID and to users with
appropriate permissions.
The Manage Catalog page appears.
To archive the whole presentation catalog, locate the archive catalog section of the page. To
archive a specific folder, browse to the folder that you want to archive and locate the archive
catalog section of the page.
Select the Keep Permissions checkbox if you want to archive the permissions that are assigned
to each item within the presentation catalog or folder.
If you do not select this option, the archiving process will not include any permissions. Upon
unarchiving, the system will assign the parent folders permissions to all of the items and folders.
23 1
Select the Keep Timestamp checkbox if you want to archive the timestamps that are assigned to
the item and folder that you are archiving. If you do not select this option, the archiving process
will not include timestamp information. Upon unarchiving, the system will apply a timestamp
indicating the time at which the item or folder was unarchived.
Click Save.
The Save As page appears.
Specify the location to which you want to save the archive file. Click Save.
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Manage Catalog button on the Catalog tab in the selection pane.
NOTE: The Manage Catalog button is available to the Administrator user ID and to users with
appropriate permissions.
The Manage Catalog page appears.
Click the Delete button next to the folder or item you want to delete.
The Confirm Item Deletion page appears.
When deleting shared folders or items, be aware that other users who have added shared items
such as requests to their Quick Answers list, or HTML content, links, requests, and so on, to their
personal Dashboards will no longer have access to them.
232
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Manage Catalog button on the Catalog tab in the selection pane.
NOTE: The Manage Catalog button is available to the Administrator user ID and to users with
appropriate permissions.
The Manage Catalog page appears.
Locate the object that you want to edit and click the following button:
Edit Name and Description
Type a new name for the object in the Name text box.
To maintain references to the object that use the previous name, click the following option:
Preserve reference to old name of this item
This creates a shortcut with the old name, pointing to the renamed object.
Click Rename.
In Oracle BI Answers, click the Manage Catalog button on the Catalog tab in the selection pane.
NOTE: The Manage Catalog button is available to the Administrator user ID and to users with
appropriate permissions.
The Manage Catalog page appears.
Click the Copy/Move button next to the folder or item you want to copy or move.
The Copy/Move page appears.
Click the folder to which you want to copy or move the folder or item. If you are moving the folder
or item, select the Move Item checkbox.
NOTE: When you copy a folder or item, it is copied to the new location and also remains in its
original location. Modifying one instance of the folder or item does not modify both instances of
the folder or item.
23 3
234
Index
A
accessing
another users account 220
Oracle BI 13
Oracle BI Delivers 164
Oracle BI Publisher 221
stand-alone Oracle BI 14
account settings
displaying for My Account page 23
accounts
accessing another users account 220
create target list view, creating list of
accounts 159
Adobe PDF
dashboard page, changing PDF options 214
print view, using to 92
print, using to 16
Advanced tab
about 32
aggregation rules
overriding default rules in pivot tables 128
alerts
accessing 189
adding RSS feed 189
note, about adding to My Dashboard
automatically 199
note, about placement using iBots 197
Answers
column filter prompt, modifying
properties 58
column filter, removing 54
pages, display of 22
archiving
note, *.mht files 17
presentation catalog 231
attachments
adding text message iBot context 176
adding variables to iBot context 176
axes
columns, selecting to display as axes 116
scaling options, setting 116
titles and labels, specifying in chart view 119
B
bar gauge 138
Briefing Book
content, adding
225
C
caches
about 18
calculations
examples 136
pivot tables, building calculations 134
pivot tables, using in 133
Catalog Manager
adding description to a dashboard 215
chart view
about 88
adding or modifying chart view 112
axes, selecting the columns to display as 116
axis scaling options, setting 116
axis titles and labels, specifying in chart
view 119
buttons, description of 111
chart graph types 108
chart properties, specifying 113
colors, background, text, and borders,
specifying 115
gauge types 137
grid lines, controlling display of colors 114
legend, specifying location 115
results, about showing in 107
user interaction, specifying 120
column filter
characteristics 47
combining with other column filters 55
editing 54
Oracle BI Answers, creating in 48
Oracle BI Answers, removing in 54
Oracle BI Answers, saving in 52
request, removing from 55
request, saving as part of 52
SQL, editing for a request 64
23 5
Index C
236
Index D
hours 78
custom format strings for conversion into
hours and minutes 79
custom format strings for conversion into
hours, minutes, and seconds 79
custom format strings for integral fields 77
entering custom date/time format strings 75
general custom format strings, table 76
ODBC custom format strings, table 77
custom formatter, using 90
D
Dashboard Editor
accessing 197
Briefing Book navigation link, adding to
dashboard page 201
content, about using to 196
content, making appear conditionally 200
dashboard page, about adding and displaying
content 200
dashboard page, about working with
columns 198
dashboard page, adding a new column 198
dashboard page, adding section to 199
dashboard page, breaking a column 198
dashboard page, making section appear
horizontally 199
dashboard page, saving changes to a
dashboard page 200
dashboard page, selecting to edit 197
dashboard page, setting column width 198
dashboard pages and layout, about working
with 197
dashboard prompt, editing properties 211
Dashboard Properties page, accessing 215
dashboard properties, changing 213
deleting a dashboard page 215
deleting objects on dashboard page 213
description, adding for a dashboard 215
embedded content, adding to dashboard
page 205
guided navigation link, adding 201
hiding a dashboard page 215
HTML, adding to dashboard page 206
objects, renaming on dashboard page 212
PDF and printing options, changing 214
permissions, changing 215
Presentation Catalog folder, adding saved
content to a dashboard page 209
renaming a dashboard page 215
reordering a dashboard page 215
reports, editing properties 211
results, controlling when drilling down 211
23 7
Index D
238
Index E
E
Edit Filter option
note, about availability 54
Edit Formula button
about 34
emailing
dashboard page or request 17
embedded content
adding to dashboard page 205
Excel
format, downloading results in 17
Internet Query, integrating with requests 40
execution order
column filter prompt, moving up or down 58
image prompt, moving up or down 60
exiting Oracle BI 16
F
feature links, using 21
filter
about 47
caution, clicking Refresh button 48
gauge view
about 88
adding or modifying gauge view 139
buttons, description of 138
23 9
Index H
H
hiding
column in results 69
dashboard page 215
horizontally
making section appear in dashboard
page 199
hours
custom format strings for conversion
hours 78
custom format strings for conversion
hours and minutes 79
custom format strings for conversion
hours, minutes, and seconds
HTML
dashboard page, adding to 206
print view, using to 92
print, using to 16
into
into
into
79
I
iBots
about enabling within Oracle BI Delivers 197
action properties, about 180
actions, about specifying 179
content choices 174
content delivery, selecting 175
contents, about specifying 173
creating 165
creating and managing, about 164
creating directly from a saved request in
Oracle BI Answers 32
currently selected recipients and available
recipients, showing 172
custom script action properties, about 181
custom script, specifying when iBot
completes 182, 183
daily schedule, executing on 169
date and time, starting at 168
delivery content, removing 176
delivery content, send to iBot creator 170
delivery content, send to multiple users 170
delivery format options 174
delivery profile, editing 166
devices and destinations, specifying 177
devices, about 178
eligible users, allowing to subscribe to the
240
iBot 170
eligible users, disallowing to subscribe to the
iBot 171
end date, selecting 169
headline, adding to appear as iBot subject
line 175
headline, adding variables to 175
list, showing list of 166
monthly schedule, executing on 169
multiple times, executing 169
next iBot, selecting to run 182
one time only, executing 169
priority, data visibility, and impersonation,
specifying 166
recipients, allowing to be determined 171
request, selecting a request to trigger an
iBot 167
scheduling, about 168
searching, searching for 165
settings, reviewing 166
starting the iBot now 168
subqueries, using to refine the request 167
subscription list, changing list 185
subscription list, viewing 184
subscription list, viewing more information
about 184
subscriptions, about customizing 185
subscriptions, customizing 185
system services, about 178
text message, adding for iBot attachment
context 176
text message, adding variables for iBot
attachment context 176
text message, adding variables in text when
there is no iBot content 177
text message, specifying when there is no iBot
content 176
user destinations, about 178
weekly schedule, executing on 169
workflow action properties, about 181
workflow, specifying to execute 182
image link
adding to dashboard page 202
image prompt
adding or modifying 58
deleting image prompt 60
execution order, moving 60
properties, modifying 59
integral fields
custom format strings 77
Internet Query
integrating requests with 40
Index L
L
legend
specifying on a chart view 115
legend view
about 89
links
Briefing Book navigation link, adding to
dashboard page 201
feature links, using 21
guided navigation link, adding to dashboard
page 201
text or image link, adding to dashboard
page 202
tip, controlling link appearance 203
logical SQL view
about 90
showing logical SQL for a request 157
Lotus Notes database
saving Oracle BI reports to 38
M
Manage Catalog
archiving the catalog 231
editing name and description of an
object 232
markup text
adding text to results 154
Microsoft
Excel format, downloading results in 17
Excels Internet Query, integrating requests
with 40
minutes
custom format strings for conversion into
hours and minutes 79
custom format strings for conversion into
hours, minutes, and seconds 79
My Account page
account settings, displaying 23
actions performed from 23
devices, about adding or modifying 24
preferences, setting 23
Presentation Catalog, editing name and
description of an object 232
My Folder folder
about and saved requests 32
N
narrative view
about 89
example 148
narrative text, adding to results 148
navigating
accessing Oracle BI, what is displayed 20
O
objects
deleting on dashboard page 213
Presentation Catalog, editing name and
description 232
renaming on dashboard page 212
ODBC custom format strings, table 77
Operational applications
about 11
operators
list of column operators and usage
guidelines 49
Oracle BI Answers
about 11
Advanced tab, about 32
clicking column, specifying what happens 70
column content layout, adding TimeZone icon
to date/time column 70
column content layout, editing 69, 70
column contents, editing the appearance 67
column contents, formatting 71
column filter prompt, adding to a request 56
column filter prompt, deleting 58
column filter, combining with other column
filters 55
column filter, creating 48
column filter, editing 54
column filter, removing from a request 55
column filter, saving as part of request 52
column filter, saving for reuse 52
column formatting functions, about using 67
column formula, editing 103
column property settings, saving as systemwide defaults 75
column, hiding in results 69
24 1
Index O
242
Index P
to 171
executing multiple times 169
executing on daily schedule 169
executing on monthly schedule 169
executing on weekly schedule 169
executing one time only 169
removing delivery content 176
reviewing settings 166
searching for 165
selecting a request to trigger an
iBot 167
iBots, selecting an end date 169
iBots, selecting content delivery 175
iBots, send delivery content to creator 170
iBots, send delivery content to multiple
users 170
iBots, showing currently selected recipients
and available recipients 172
iBots, showing list of 166
iBots, specifying priority, visibility, and
impersonation 166
iBots, starting at specified date and time 168
iBots, subject line, adding heading to appear
as 175
iBots, subject line, adding variables to 175
iBots, using subqueries to refine the
request 167
new iBot, creating 165
next iBot, selecting to run 182
start page, returning to 166
starting the iBot now 168
text message, adding for iBot attachment
context 176
text message, adding variables for iBot
attachment context 176
text message, adding variables in text when
there is no iBot content 177
text message, specifying when there is no iBot
content 176
users, customizing view for 95
Oracle BI Interactive Dashboards
See dashboards
Oracle BI Publisher
accessing 221
dashboards, adding reports to 210
report types 221
using dashboard prompts with reports 223
working with 220
Oracle BI Publisher Reports
toolbar, using the 222
Oracle BI Server Cache
about 178
Order By button
about 34
iBots,
iBots,
iBots,
iBots,
iBots,
iBots,
iBots,
iBots,
iBots,
P
pages
about components 22
panes
about 22
parenthetical filtering
See filter
Pareto graph type 109
PDF
dashboard page, changing PDF options 214
print view, using to 92
print, using to 16
permissions
dashboard page, changing for 215
Oracle BI Answers, and what you see 29
personal folder
note, about prompts saved to 63
request, saving to 37
Pie graph type 109
pivot table view
about 88
calculation examples 136
calculations, building 134
calculations, using 133
default aggregation rules, overriding 128
displaying running sums 132
drop-down lists, using multiple 128
formatting, adding 129
items relative value, showing 132
results, showing in 125
view, adding or modifying 125
pivot tables
note, and conditional formatting 73
preferences
setting for My Accounts page 23
preferred time zone
setting 24
Presentation Catalog
archiving 231
dashboard page, adding view of folder 208
object, editing name and description 232
Oracle BI Delivers, working with content
saved in 165
saved content, adding to dashboard
page 209
saved requests, viewing stored in 29
Presentation Catalog object security 13
printing
briefing book 226
dashboard or saved request 16
dashboard page, changing printing
24 3
Index Q
options 214
view 92
prompts
column filter prompt, adding to a request 56
column filter prompt, deleting 58
column filter prompt, modifying
properties 58
dashboard prompt, adding to a dashboard or
page 63
dashboard prompt, creating for filtering
requests 60
dashboard prompt, editing 63
dashboard prompt, editing properties 211
dashboard prompt, saving 63
dashboard prompt, using with Oracle BI
Publisher report 223
image prompt, adding or modifying 58
image prompt, deleting 60
image prompt, modifying properties 59
image prompt, moving in execution order 60
types of 56
Prompts tab
about 32
properties
chart properties, specifying 113
column filter prompt, modifying
properties 58
dashboard prompt, editing properties 211
Dashboard Properties page, accessing 215
dashboard properties, changing 213
image prompt, modifying properties 59
reports, editing properties 211
saved filter, displaying for 53
view properties, editing 98
Q
quitting
Oracle BI 16
R
Radar graph type 109
rearrange
using compound layout view to rearrange
view 97
Refresh button
caution, using with requests 33
Refresh Display link
about using 37
refreshing
current request in a view 94
dashboard or request 18
Oracle BI metadata, refreshing selection pane
information 36
244
Index S
S
saving
column filter, saving as part of request 52
column filter, saving for reuse 52
dashboard page, saving changes 200
dashboard prompt 63
Oracle BI view 91
Scatter graph type 110
script
custom script, about executing when iBot
completes 181
custom script, specifying script when iBot
completes 182, 183
scrolling ticker
showing results 151
searching
searching for saved request 30
seconds
custom format strings for conversion into
hours, minutes, and seconds 79
security
types of 13
Security button
note, about displaying 215
segments
creating using create segment view 158
Select Recipients dialog box
using 172
selection pane
refreshing information 19
24 5
Index T
shared folder
request, saving to 37
sorting
requests by column 35
SQL
column filter, editing for a request 64
logical SQL, examining or editing for a
request 42
logical SQL, showing for a request 157
stand-alone Oracle BI
about 13
accessing 14
feature links, about 21
start page
example 27
returning to 30
subject areas and requests, accessing 29
static text view
about 89
adding markup text to results 154
Step graph type 110
subject areas
accessing using Oracle BI Answers 29
subscription list
changing list 185
iBot, viewing more information about 184
viewing 184
system services
about for the iBot 178
system-wide defaults
saving column property settings as 75
T
table view
about 87
adding write back to 100
working with 100
tabs
about 22
tab-separated list of values
downloading results 18
text link
adding to dashboard page 202
ticker view
about 89
scrolling ticker, showing results in 151
time
See custom date/time format strings
Time Zone
setting preferred time zone 24
timestamps
See custom date/time format strings
TimeZone icon
246
U
user destination
about for the iBot 178
V
Variables
using presentation variables and system
variables 44
view selector view
about 89
views
axes, selecting the columns to display as 116
axis scaling options, setting 116
axis titles and labels, specifying in chart
view 119
calculation examples 136
chart graph types 108
chart view buttons 111
chart view, about showing results in 107
chart view, adding or modifying 112
chart view, controlling display of grid lines and
colors 114
chart view, specifying colors, background,
text, and borders 115
chart view, specifying general chart
properties 113
chart view, specifying legend location 115
column selector view, allowing users to
change columns in requests 144
compound layout view, accessing from
another view 95
compound layout view, accessing on a
dashboard 96
compound layout view, using to add view 96
compound layout view, using to delete
view 97
compound layout view, using to edit
properties 98
compound layout view, using to rearrange
view 97
copy, making 93
create segment view, creating segments 158
create target list view, creating lists of
contacts and accounts 159
current request, refreshing results 94
dashboard, previewing view 93
data types, formatting and configuring datadriven navigation 90
Index W
W
Web page
downloading results as 18
WHERE clause
translating column filter into 47
workflow
iBots, about workflow action properties 181
specifying to execute 182
workspace
Advanced tab, about 32
Criteria tab, about 31
Prompts tab, about 32
Results tab, about 31
tabs, about accessing 30
tabs, accessing 30
Write Back
using 19
24 7
Index W
248